NC churches can hold outdoor services, but some plan to stay online for now

"We want to give people that opportunity to make that trip on a Sunday morning as part of their worship experience," said Jim Shelton, one of the pastors at Faith Harvest Church in Wake Forest.

Local church held in-person services Sunday amid pandemic and stay-at-home orders

Forest said he and other church leaders are looking into whether to offer outdoor seating and get people out of their cars – as long as they maintain some physical distance between one another.

"We're talking to other churches," he said. "We're in a network of churches. We believe there's wisdom in listening to each other. We want to be good stewards of this time.

"We just want everyone to know we're setting the standard of safety and comfort," he added.

"I do believe that our churches are going to welcome that," Milton Hollifield, executive director-treasurer for the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina, said of outdoor services.

The convention represents more than 4,000 churches across North Carolina, and Hollifield said that, although video streaming has been a boon for many churches – audiences for their services have increased – he knows many congregations are eager for an in-person worship experience – even if it's from a lawn chair.

"I firmly believe that many of our congregations will be thrilled to know, for the purposes of their safety, that churches can meet for outdoor services," he said.

But Hayes Barton Baptist Church in Raleigh has no plans for an outdoor service, officials said, choosing instead to stick to a virtual experience and televising its services on FOX50.