Pastor Schoch: Evaluating, Adapting, Growing as a Disciple

Jeff Schoch, pastor at Abundant Life Fellowship in New Waterford, is coming back strong. You can read more about the church at its website.

What are some ways the COVID-19 outbreak has changed your work life?

The initial impact on Abundant Life Fellowship was that we suspended in-person gatherings, which was a tough call. Part of our DNA as an organization is intimately linked to meeting together, not just in corporate worship, but in small groups both inside and outside the church. We put a premium on it – not as a law or requirement – but as a core value of applying biblical principles for daily life and doing ministry together. I decided immediately that even though the doors were closed, I was still planning to be there Sunday mornings at 9 to walk, pray and worship outside around the property. I invited others to do the same while encouraging social distancing protocols. Attendance was sparse, but generally 25 to 30 people showed up. A neighbor of the church who worships elsewhere joined us many weeks. 

We also began offering taped online messages from three of our pastors on our Facebook and YouTube pages and links on our website. The teachings especially encouraged our people to use the time apart to grow their faith and intimacy with Jesus. I believe some of that happened. 

Our worship pastor and team members also offered Saturday night worship on Facebook. That was very well received not only for the music, but also as a way to pray for and encourage one another. 

We resumed in-person corporate worship June 7, with reduced and spaced-out sanctuary seating and about 10 protocols. Our sanctuary typically seats about 600, but we had reduced seating to allow for about 250. We added extra ushers to help with crowd control. About 180 people came, and everything went very well. I think those who came were thrilled to be back. 

How about your personal life?

The best personal impact is the quality time with my wife. Both of us have always put a premium on staying healthy, but we’ve always done our own exercise routines separately. We decided early on during this time, we would walk together as often as we could, and we’ve done that, going anywhere from three to seven miles. We discovered things nearby that we didn’t know were there. Llamas two miles down the road, for example.

The second personal thing for me is linked to doing online messages. That freaked me out at first, looking only at myself and speaking to an audience that wasn’t there. I like to interact with people during my messages, so not being able to look into faces, put a hand on a shoulder and exchange encouragement of any kind was very strange. So that part has been an important learning and stretching experience that has now become an added communication tool in what we do. 

What steps are you taking to hang tough?

When we resumed meeting together, I went through a list of ways ministry had carried on even though the doors were closed. I believe part of coming back strong as a church is being willing to continually evaluate what ministry looks like and be creative in our approaches to caring for people. From a personal standpoint, I’ve sensed a greater urgency, not as a pastor but as a disciple, to encourage people everywhere to pursue Jesus themselves. People need hope and peace and a firm foundation, and the human spirit alone cannot offer those apart from Christ. 

What advice are you sharing with the people you love?

Seek Jesus. Surrender. Stay bowed down. Study the scriptures. Renew your mind. Pray. Worship. Serve others. Throw off hindrances. Wash your hands and face often. Gargle. Work hard. Keep fit. Laugh at yourself. Do all of these even when you don’t feel like it.