In Deacon Sandles's absence, I looked over the church's financial records very carefully. I had a long conversation with Sister Coleman, who is worried that Deacon Sandles may die. She saw him Sunday. She said he looked so dark and was very weak. I encouraged her about his condition without giving any false hope (journal entry, Wednesday, June 23).

The second wave of COVID-19 began with the extended sickness and downward spiral of the chairman of the deacons, one of the chief voices in favor of continuing to meet despite public opposition.

How would a church and pastor, already pushed to the brink of mental and spiritual exhaustion, deal with his sickness, then the eventual sicknesses and deaths of others within its ranks? The church would meet the true enemy, the virus itself, up close and personal.