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Advent Devotion: Christmas and Grief

Written by Fred & Ginny Karnas

Scripture reading:   A sound is heard in Ramah, the sound of bitter weeping.  Rachel is crying for her children; she refuses to be comforted, for they are dead. (Matthew 2:18)

Meditation:  This prophecy of Jeremiah is repeated in Matthew as part of the Christmas story. We often quickly slip over the story of Herod’s effort to protect his kingdom from the new Messiah by calling for the killing of all Hebrew boys, “who had lived in or near Bethlehem and were under two.”   It is a hard story which seems to take us on an unwelcome path of sadness and fear in this season of joy. But the journey to Christmas is like all journeys; there are likely to be tears and hard places along the way.   

During the 1990s I spent a significant period of time working with people living with HIV/AIDS.  Even though I had spent a good portion of my working life until that time working among the poor and homeless, I had little experience in the world of those suffering from this awful disease.  I listened as a mother told the story of nursing her dying son in his final days, his frail body ravaged by the sores and disease that had consumed it.  I watched a friend waste away before my eyes as the disease, long in remission, cruelly reemerged and recaptured his body.  And I sat in stunned silence after hearing the news of another friend’s death from AIDS, knowing that the fear of revealing he was gay had forced him into a lonely and painful death.  He had not shared his diagnosis even with us, his friends.

I heard tragic story after story of lost loves and friends, of funeral after funeral, until even the healthy were so exhausted they no longer wanted to go on.  We seldom stop to think about the inconsolable grief some segments of our society have endured, and the strength they have shown in the face of this awful scourge.  And we seldom contemplate what this nation has lost in the young men and women that AIDS has taken from us. I grieve for the teachers, doctors, artists, dancers, athletes, engineers, and musicians whose life works would have made this world a better place.  I grieve for their partners and friends who have been left alone.  And I grieve that so many of us did not reach out to them.

Yes, the journey to Christmas requires us to share the grief that only God can relieve, and the hope of Christmas calls us to reach out to those who suffer and seek comfort and peace.  

Prayer:  Lord, give us the strength to journey with those who are marginalized, and those who struggle with sickness and the ever-present specter of death.  Help us to know what to do, what to say, and how to share your gift of peace. Amen

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Advent Devotion Introduction

The Christmas story is about journeys.  It is the story of a young expectant mother traveling to Bethlehem with her husband to pay taxes.  It is the story of the Magi following the stars in search of a King, and of humble shepherds taking leave of their sheep to find a Savior wrapped in cloth in a manger.

And so it is for all of us.  The birth of Christ marks the beginning of the journey to Easter and our personal journey from brokenness to wholeness.  For those who choose to listen, the Christmas story transforms each of us into a traveler on the road to reconciliation, redemption and hope.

Our personal journey has taken us to many places only God could have imagined, from the windswept plains of a North Dakota reservation to the sugar cane fields of south Florida; from a barrio in the desert Southwest to the hollows of Appalachia, and the streets of inner-city Washington, D.C.  Along the way we were blessed with a decade at Fredericksburg Baptist Church where we were nurtured, supported, challenged and uplifted.

In 2002, we were humbled to have been asked to share some stories of our journey with our fellow parishioners during Advent season.  And, this year, we are equally humbled to share these stories with our friends at Tabernacle Baptist Church. In the pages of this devotional you will hear the stories of those we have come to know as we have traveled…stories from our work with Native Americans, migrant farm workers, elderly persons and the homeless men, women and children.

Many of the people we will introduce to you in the pages ahead have led very difficult lives.  Most have overcome incredible odds and openly share their stories.  Others are more reticent, desiring to put the past behind them and grasp their new futures of hope.  In order to ensure that we did not compromise anyone’s privacy we have changed some of the details.

Additionally, to make it easier for readers (and the writers), we have chosen to refer to God as He, even though it our belief that God encompasses both masculinity and femininity.  All scripture references, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Bible in Today’s English Version, commonly know as the “Good News Bible.” 

A number of the readings make reference to Christ House, a medical recovery facility with 24–hour nursing coverage for homeless and formerly homeless men and women.  Christ House is an all-encompassing ministry with a social work department, a substance abuse recovery program, a worshipping congregation, and a staff who live in community on site.  Kairos House is a companion ministry nearby where former Christ House patients committed to recovery live in community. Christ House is located in the Adams-Morgan neighborhood of Washington, DC, and was part of the Church of the Saviour’s family of ministries. The Church of the Saviour is now a scattered community of independent churches.

As we journey toward the destination of Christmas, we must recognize that this journey is only preparation for a longer one.  Christ invites you on a longer journey into the life of your community to tell the story of Jesus and reach out to a hurting world.

It is our prayer that through our stories you will hear the Christmas story in a different way this year, and the people we introduce to you will challenge you to invest yourselves even more in ministry at Tabernacle Baptist Church and in the community.   As we begin our journey remember these words of Jean Vanier:

We are called to drink deeply from the heart of Christ, so that we, the church, can become a home for the lonely and the crushed of this earth. Christ puts into the arms of His church the suffering and the hungry of this world so that they may heal us, call us down from our pedestals of power and wealth and lead us into the wisdom of the beatitudes.

Please come with us as we travel to Christmas.

Fred and Ginny Karnas

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Lifting up Richard’s family in their grieving and celebrating.

RICHARD MYRON ANTHONY SR.

December 18, 1929 – November 13, 2023

Richard Myron Anthony, Sr., 93, of Oklahoma City, OK, passed away on Monday, November 13, 2023.  He was born on December 18, 1929, in Patrick Springs, Virginia, to the late John Virgil Anthony, Jr. and Hallie Ethel Foster Anthony. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife, Cora Lee Hiatt Anthony; seven brothers, John Virgil Anthony, III, Douglas Anthony, Clarence Anthony, Charles Graves Anthony, William Penn Anthony, James Maxwell Anthony, and Thomas Anthony; and two sisters, Nancy Elizabeth Anthony and Hallie Anthony Slagle. 

Richard was a member for 40 years of the First Baptist Church of Martinsville and a member for 22 years of the Tabernacle Baptist Church of Richmond.  Richard was a business owner; he owned R.M. Anthony Construction Corporation, Brookshire Apartments, Sherwood Manor, and Fairway Apartments. He was the co-owner of Anthony Brothers Lumber Company.  Richard graduated from the University of Richmond, and while attending, he was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha, where he was a chapter president. He served as the president of the Bassett Kiwanis. 

Richard is survived by one son, Richard M. Anthony; two daughters, Kimberly Anthony, and Lisa Anthony; one chiweenie named Larry; and one pitweenie named Lucy.

The family will receive friends from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 21, 2023, at Bassett Funeral Service Chapel. The funeral service will start at 2:00 p.m. at the Bassett Funeral Service Chapel, with Rev. Mark Andrist officiating. A burial will follow immediately after the service at the Anthony Family Cemetery in Patrick Springs, Virgina.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association by mail to 225 N. Michigan Ave., Fl. 17, Chicago, IL 60601, or online at https://www.alz.org/. 

Online condolences may be made by visiting www.bassettfuneralservice.com. Bassett Funeral Service is serving the Anthony family.

tbc Church Business

Follow-up: TBC Building Assessment

ex·cep·tion·al

unusually good; outstanding.

What a gift it was to come together on Sunday afternoon to hear the story of what God has done over these last three months, celebrate the faithfulness of those making ministry happen, and embrace the voices of those leading us.

What a gift it was to welcome Carson Dean back into the fold, grow in awareness of his exceptional giftedness and receive the generous gift of his time and expertise.  It was truly an exceptional meeting, a much needed gathering in an exceptional moment in the life of our church.  Thank you to all of those that served on both sides of the kitchen counter and also in front of computer monitors. Thank you to our leaders, and the larger community,  for the courage to see the bigger challenges and opportunities before us.

Click Here to read the Draft Report Cover Letter received from Carson
Click Here to read Carson’s Draft Copy of his Facility Management Assessment & Usage Visioning Report

Sterling Severns Church Business

What might God do with the dust of our fallen structures?

In light of last week’s headline, World Health Organization declaring an end to COVID-19 as a global health emergency

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A word of encouragement to those (re)building, (re)viving, (re)missioning, and (re)forming institutions

All humans long for stability. Throughout time, Societies have built structures to protect stability. Call it covid, call it chaos, there’s been a whole lotta shakin’ goin’ on. Rigid structures don’t tend to fare well when the ground starts shaking. No structure is meant to last forever and yet when history circles back around we’re surprised by its arrival. Anything we carve or build out of rock, bricks, steel, or glass, eventually falls. Travel to Greece, Rome, the site of the former World Trade Center in NYC, or, (dare I say it) down a long stretch of Monument Avenue in Richmond, Va, historical structures eventually and always buckle under the pressure of the passage of time.

Most any group of people that find themselves finally tasting the “good life” naturally want to build a structure that can maintain, expand, and protect that way of life (aka stability). Think about the destructive cycles that spin chaos into the world from there. If building, maintaining, expanding, and protecting our “good life” requires the diminishing, disqualifying or destruction of the lives of others, expect chaos and prepare to choke on the dust of fallen idols, fortresses, and structures.

I believe God is refashioning us, not only out of the dust of our fallen idols, fortresses, and structures, but also out of the dust being stirred up by the beautiful feet of those walking beside “God with Us”

There’s a moment in the Bible when the disciples of Jesus find themselves awestruck by the Temple structure,“Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what a wonderful structure!” Jesus responds, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” The temple is supposed to be the most stable place on earth, the one place where God’s finger touches the world, therefore the one place chaos can’t possibly exist.

Later in the story, those that arrested Jesus justify their actions based on the audacity of Jesus bringing chaos, the equivalent of kryptonite, into the temple. He doesn’t help his case when he predicts the temple’s destruction or in claiming he will rebuild the temple in three days. To add insult to injury, he claims the new Temple won’t be confined by geography or any other lines we might draw in the sand. No-one-corner of the world will be able to claim this One as their own. This One, is meant to travel. This One is a throwback to the original design. Anyone with institutional memory might call him “Tabernacle”, but most of his followers call him Savior.

Church, I know we’re all longing for stability, it’s natural to do so, especially in our grieving. I want you to know that I join you in deep grieving. So much more, I want you to know that we worship a God that brings order out of Chaos.

Any version of life, built upon a structure that diminishes the potential for thriving in the lives of others, cannot be attributed to the goodness of God.

YHWH didn’t fashion us out of metaphorical dust, breathe air into our lungs, and put us on our feet, only for us to create our own versions of the “good life”. Any version of life, built upon a structure that diminishes the potential for thriving in the lives of others, cannot be attributed to the goodness of God. Any version of the “good life” that leads someone into isolation, separation, or even relational annihilation is a cheap counterfeit. God is good…all of the time. The good life Christ offers is the real deal….the Way, the Truth, and The Life. Walk in the knowledge that we follow a Savior that can take all of the fallenness, brokenness, and complexities of the stories of the past and present, all of the unintentional chaos we’ve unleashed into the world, and somehow bring profound goodness through it. Know that God can, and will, make ALL things for good.

As we move out of this global pandemic, it will be critical for us to understand that it’s not our job to rebuild our temples. God already did that, three days after his son was crucified. The news gets even better. The resurrected Savior is inviting us to tabernacle with him right smack into the middle of the chaos. He’s inviting us to join the search party for those who have stumbled into, or were pushed into, lostness and loneliness. He’s inviting us to join him in the reclamation of the abandoned, to participate in the healing of the brokenhearted, and even in the resuscitation of the hearts of the presumed “righteous”.

In this very moment, I believe God is refashioning us, not only out of the dust of our fallen idols, fortresses, and structures, but also out of the dust being stirred up by the beautiful feet of those walking beside “God with Us”. It’s an invitation to breathe again. It’s an invitation to life again. It’s the invitation of a lifetime!

Rev. Sterling W. Severns, Pastor

  • This is an adaptation of something first written in January 2022.

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Registration Deadline for this weekend’s: Re-Visioning Retreat, January 13-15, 2023

In decades past, previous generations at Tabernacle set aside time, often full weeks or weekends, to come together purposefully and expectantly. Long ago, these gatherings were called revivals and more recently spiritual renewal weekends.

 Though the format of those gatherings have changed, the longings and expectations of each generation, including our generation, have not wavered. For almost 150 years our local congregation has come together, often in our most vulnerable chapters of communal life, to express our yearning for revival, to pray for inspirited vision, to petition God to give us unity in the (re)discovery of purpose and call. 

The weekend of January 13-15, 2023, our generation will come together, in both the physical church building and in our virtual acre. Mark Tidsworth, our facilitator, will  help us explore the challenges and opportunities standing before the Universal Church and guide our local church in prayerful discernment/dialogue.

We will  introduce three questions as an invitation into  discernment.  

What might God do, in and through us,  if we were to shift away from __________________  and move toward _________________? 

  • member identity to disciple identity
  • attractional to missional church
  • consumer culture to sacred partnering

On Friday night, Mark will provide a format we’ll use for capturing our insights and we’ll continue to gather and glean throughout the entire weekend. This, plus the insights generated during multiple small group discussions, will be funneled to church leadership after this weekend. In turn, the leaders will determine how we can effectively continue to discern together as a congregation. 

The Holy Spirit is prompting our old church to embrace a new day in this new world we’re all living in and we offer our praise to God for what we’re about to see and hear.  Tabernacle, yet again, Christ is on the move, and, yet again, the revived, renewed, and re-missioned Church is called to follow.  


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Retreat Schedule:
Friday, January 13 6-9 pm (dinner provided)
Saturday, January 14, 9-12 pm 12-12:45 (lunch provided), 12:45 – 3 pm
Sunday, January 15, 9 – 10:30 am + worship

Cost: 
There is no registration fee. However, we do ask that each participant bring a pack of bottled waters or canned beverages + a sweet/salty snack to share.

Childcare: 
Whereas, we won’t be able to provide a nursery on-site,  we can help offset some of the expense of baby sitting in your homes and possibly identify babysitters.

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It will be helpful to us if each participating member of your household registers separately. Please REGISTER BY CLICKING HERE.

A greeting from our Retreat Facilitator

tbc Church Business, Sabbath, Worship

Guidance on receiving your Epiphany Star (word)During the invitation in today’s service (1.8.23)

During the invitation in today’s service, you are invited to click on this link to request a star (word for the year): https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/NMSGTG8

One of your fellow worshippers will be asked to gather a star for you. We’ll reach out in the next couple of days to real your word and you can anticipate receiving the tangible star sometime in the week ahead.

FOR OUR GUESTS:This practice is incredibly meaningful to our little church. You picked a fantastic day to join us! * Your star will have a word written on it. * There are 100+ different words we’ve written on the stars and folks aren’t given the option of trading their word in for another. As you pray and reflect upon your word throughout 2023, it’s possible God wants you be more deliberate in your embracing of something. It’s equally possible the word represents something God will help you relinquish or re-frame. The fullness of the gift can only be revealed in time.

tbc Church Business, Leadership Roundtable, Re-Visioning Retreat

Save the Date! Church Wide Retreat

Save the Date: Church-Wide Re-Visioning Retreat

God is preparing our historic church  for a new chapter…..a new day….a new beginning.  TBC leadership hasinvited Mark Tidsworth, founder and team leader of Pinnacle Leadership Associates, to bring  the entire congregation together for a weekend of discerning dialogue.

We will gather:  Friday evening, all-day Saturday, and conclude in worship on Sunday morning.  Participants can join us in both the physical building and/or TBC’s virtual acre.  Sign-ups will begin in the next week or so.

The leadership of the church would love for you to join us in reading Mark’s book, Shift: Three Big Moves for the 21st Century Church, in preparation for the retreat.