As Christians around the US and around the world are forced to practice social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, pastors and believers are adapting to the loss of Sunday gatherings. These powerful photos prove that the Church of Jesus is not a building, it’s His people. And the God who offers salvation for each individual is still able to meet with you one-on-one, whether it’s the middle of a parking lot, or in your own living room.
George DeCola, of Richmond, talks with someone who drove up for a prayer at a shopping center on April 2, 2020, in Richmond, Va. DeCola, who is a worship leader at a Lutheran Church offers prayers for those wanting spiritual guidance. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
A prayer vigil for all the healthcare workers at Tidelands Waccamaw Community Hospital is held in the parking lot by hundreds of members of Belin Memorial United Methodist Church and members of the Murrells Inlet, S.C., community holding signs, praying and singing in support of the hospital staff April 2, 2020. (Jason Lee/The Sun News via AP)
Victoria Cornell waves her arms in prayer during a drive-in Easter service Sunday, April 12, 2020, at the Happy Gospel Center Church in Bradenton, Fla. The outdoor service was an attempt to stop the spread of the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)
In this Sunday, April 5, 2020 photo, a Palm Sunday community-wide drive-in worship and prayer service is held at the 411 Twin Drive-In in Centre, Ala. (Joe Songer/The Birmingham News via AP)
Lone Star Cowboy Church Lead Pastor Randy Weaver raises his hands in prayer during a live stream of their Easter service Sunday, April 12, 2020, in Montgomery, Texas. The service was held in the church’s empty dirt arena where normally thousands would have attended but could not due to social distancing guidelines during the coronavirus outbreak. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
Pastor Paul Marc Goulet prays to people in their cars at an Easter drive-in service at the International Church of Las Vegas due to the coronavirus outbreak, Sunday, April 12, 2020, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
People hold up their hands in prayer at an Easter drive-in service at the International Church of Las Vegas, Sunday, April 12, 2020, in Las Vegas. The church held the service where worshipers stayed in their cars due to the coronavirus outbreak. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Prayer is seen written in chalk outside of the Calvin Presbyterian Church, on Easter Sunday, April 12, 2020, in Zelienople, Pa. Parishioners were not attending the church for the Easter services that were being streamed on the internet because of the concern of spreading the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)
Churchgoers attend an Easter service in the parking lot of Xtreme Harvest Church in San Antonio, Sunday, April 12, 2020. Many churches are adapting their services as Christians around the world are celebrating Easter at a distance due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Pastor Jon Duncan of Cross Culture Christian Center greets a congregant before giving a prayer outside of Bethel Open Bible Church in Lodi, Calif., Sunday, April 5, 2020. Cross Culture Christian Center, a church in California’s Central Valley that said it intended to still gather for worship, canceled its plans Sunday when someone changed the locks to the building. Duncan told congregants who drove to the church for Palm Sunday service that the building the church uses for services was shut. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Pastor Jon Duncan of Cross Culture Christian Center kneels while giving a prayer to a congregant member parked outside of Bethel Open Bible Church in Lodi, Calif., Sunday, April 5, 2020. Cross Culture Christian Center, a church in California’s Central Valley that said it intended to still gather for worship, canceled its plans Sunday when someone changed the locks to the building. Duncan told congregants who drove to the church for Palm Sunday service that the building the church uses for services was shut. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Keeping to safe social distance guidelines, worshipers pray at their own vehicles as they attend an outside drive-in Easter service at the Living Word church due to the coronavirus Sunday, April 12, 2020, in Mesa, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
People gather at the Mount Davidson Cross in San Francisco, Sunday, April 12, 2020. Mount Davidson’s annual Easter Sunrise Service was canceled for San Francisco’s shelter in place orders over coronavirus concerns. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Around the world, Christians are still finding ways to express their faith. People pray in their cars during an Easter Monday church service in a meadow in Sonsbeck-Achterhoek, Germany, April 13, 2020. The sermon of the priest, who is standing on a stage, is transmitted via loudspeakers. (Arnulf Stoffel/dpa via AP)
If you missed the great CBN News story about these “He Is Risen” cars, check it out here:
Church Without Walls: A Dozen VA Churches Find Unique Way to Declare ‘He Is Risen’ at Easter
While our nation journeys through the coronavirus crisis, CBN News is inviting readers to share moments of hope through social media posts and video files by sending your links to Newswatch@cbn.org.