Table of Contents

Introduction

I have heard a lot of people refer to this period in time, due to the COVID-19 Virus, as the "new normal." I am not sure I really believe that.

I saw this picture and it was a great representation of this concept. See how the arrows (depicting a temporarily road detour) curve out, but then realigns itself to the original path. That really struck me this week. This is a detour of sorts and not a complete departure from the path we are/were on.

While I believe that there will be long term lasting "normal" elements that will come to fruition or that will be accelerated due to the virus, I am not ready to call it the new norm. For example:

  1. I think we will do more virtual meetings. As such, companies like Zoom, GoToMeeting, Hangout and other conferencing applications will be a mainstay for not only businesses, but churches and even our social lives.
  2. I suspect that hand-washing will be more rigorous post virus.
  3. Online shopping will be the norm. While the trend was heading that way, I believe it will be accelerated.
  4. Carryout and Delivery will become a staple for many of us.
  5. Online "church" will take a leap forward as more people finally realize that it is a viable option.
  6. Online giving will become an almost absolute for every church and not just the large or millennial drive ones.
  7. Serving others will become second nature and continue well after the quarantine period is over.

I am sure there are dozens of other things that will become normal and the expected way of functioning...but the state in which we find ourselves is temporary in more ways than not. I am convinced that we:

  1. Need human interaction
  2. Will be back worshiping in our church facilities
  3. Will not have to stand 6 feet apart
  4. Can have more than 10 people in a meeting
  5. Will need to clean our church facilities daily
  6. Will have long term plans to make (maybe with some prudent contingency planning)
  7. Will have choir and praise team rehearsals inn the same room
  8. Will have small group meetings in homes and church education facilities
  9. Will have paper products to replenish in our churches and cleaning products to re-stock
  10. Will have to fulfill work orders and preventive maintenance
  11. Will have events to schedule
  12. Will have assets and inventory to manage
  13. Will have spills that need cleaned up
  14. Will have HVAC filters to replace and belts to tighten
  15. We will have light bulbs to change
  16. We will have walls to paint
  17. Etc, Etc, Etc. Etc, Etc.............

See what I mean? For those of us that are entrusted to steward the ministry facilities God's blessed us with, this is only a temporary normal. So...I would suggest that we all take this time to make sure we are ready for the "old normal" as much of it will be the New Normal once again.

Tim Cool
Chief Executive Officer
Tim Cool is the founder of Smart Church Solutions and takes great pride in helping churches optimize their facilities. When he’s not at the helm of his company, he’s dedicated to his family, being a husband to Lisa and a father to 27-year-old triplets. An enthusiast of the outdoors, Tim enjoys the simplicity of hiking in the North Carolina mountains.
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