tbc Church Business, Media

MEMBER ACTION REQUIRED: THIS WEEK’S VOTE ON RECEIVING FUNDS FROM THE PAYCHECK PROTECTION PROGRAM.

Member Action Required. from Sterling W. Severns on Vimeo.

This video features Kristen O’Sullivan, Director of our Child Care Center Ministry, and Terry McMahon, Chair of our Administrative Board. They offer timely and specific information on this week’s vote on church approval of receiving funds from the Paycheck Protection Program. 

We have no idea when to expect a call from the bank to secure the $212,900 grant/loan. However, when the call comes we need to be ready. If we miss our window, we may not have access to the funds anytime in the foreseeable future. Thus, we need to break our usual protocol in providing two weeks notice prior to this type of vote. The grant/loan effectively becomes “forgivable” as long as we abide by the specific guidelines. It will make a significant/positive impact on life and ministry in the church. The Administrative Board unanimously recommends that we proceed with securing the grant/loan.

CLICK HERE FOR INFORMATION ON HOW TO VOTE and the Q&A Sheet.

Please help us spread the word, church members can vote anytime BETWEEN the bookends of Thursday, April 23 through 5:00 PM on Sunday, April 26.

We’re in this together!

Meg Lacy Vega Church Business, Media, Soul Care

Soul Care Week One: Becoming Present

The best preparation 

for a life of prayer

is simply to become

more intensely human


-Kenneth Leech

The practice of presence is about paying attention, waking up to the world around us. Each day this week we will post meditations, images, poetry and activities inviting us to become present–in our surroundings, with our deepest selves, and with the Spirit of God.

Pray As You Go: Breath Prayers

Breath prayers are brief prayers found in scripture that we can offer in any moment, using the inhale and exhale of our breath. They are a link that help us stay connected to God’s presence within us, and within the world. Below are some examples of prayers, but there are limitless possibilities if there is a particular Scripture you wish to pray. Each of these prayers follows the rhythm of the breath, the first line being offered on the inhale and the second line being offered with the exhale.

When I am afraid,
I will trust in you.

The Lord is my Shepherd,
I shall not want.


Be still,
and know.

Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
(this is a form of the Jesus prayer)

Family Activity: BLOWING BUBBLES

Rainbow bubbles, bouncing bubbles, big bubbles, and small bubbles — bubble blowing can be  fun family activity as the weather gets warmer. This practice brings awareness to your breath and your child’s breath as they blow out bubbles. “Listen to your breath” is a gentle way to focus attention on Practicing the Presence.

Communion
tbc Church Business

Partaking in Communion this Sunday.

We will partake of communion each Sunday during this Easter Season.

The diversity of our unique theological heritages is one of our God’s greatest gifts at Tabernacle. One of markers of the gift is our diverse convictions about the Lord’s Supper. We believe that Jesus opens the table to everyone. That said, we also believe that each person should remain true to their convictions.  Some of us were raised in traditions that believe communion should only be received after someone has been baptized or confirmed, while others were raised to believe that no specific criteria is required for participation. There is a wide assortment of beliefs about the symbolism and meaning of communion.


We are a priesthood of all believers, an eclectic and beautiful circle of Jesus followers. We celebrate our differences. We make space for people to grow in their understanding of theology while also honoring the places we’ve come from. 


We want you to know that it’s okay for you, or your loved ones, to partake of the elements if you feel that it is appropriate.

tbc Church Business, Media

Easter Ritual

We gather in quiet. Sunlight streams into the darkness as doors are opened. The very candle we extinguished on Good Friday enters the room. The candle is passed throughout the Sanctuary until it is finally placed amid a wreath of flowers. 

We light the candle and proclaim, “He is Risen”!

….and the celebration begins. 

Meg Lacy Vega Church Business

Maundy Thursday: Gathering for Holy Conversation

In John 13, Jesus gathers his disciples together around a table. After he washes their feet, he commands us to love one another as he has has loved us. (By the way, the meaning of the Latin word Maundy is commandment.)

To celebrate Maundy Thursday this year, we invite you to share a meal and holy conversation with others virtually. Invite one or two other families or individuals to participate with you by gathering at their table, with their meal, at the same time. Use it as an opportunity to reflect on who you feel God is nudging you to connect with or reach out to during this season. 

Details for the Meal
Virtual Format – You can use any form of virtual connection that works for you. There are many free video conference services, including FaceTime (Apple), Google Hangouts, and Skype, and audio only options, such as FreeConferenceCalling.Com. Tabernacle Community, If you need help setting one of these up, please contact Meg@tbcrichmond.org and she will assist. Members of sister churches are encouraged to reach out their pastoral staff members for assistance.

Who – One of the gifts of our traditional Maundy Thursday meal is its inter-generational nature. We encourage you to use this meal as a time to connect with someone outside of your typical circle or age group, or even someone that lives in another part of the world but who is connected to Tabernacle through Livestream ministry or other avenues.

Time – There is not a single time for this event, as we expect folks to gather at various times depending on what works best for their schedule. Be sure to consider time zone differences should you want to dine with someone that doesn’t live in your neck of the woods.

Holy Conversation: Group Reflection Questions

Spend the first part of the meal catching up with one another, sharing the gifts and challenges of this season together. When you feel ready, we invite you to transition into a time of Holy conversation using the following questions that bring us into connection with the Passover meal Jesus shared with his disciples.

  1. Why is this night different from all other nights? Why do we call this particular Thursday “holy”?
  2. Share one word about how you are feeling in the midst of this Holy Week, as we navigate the rituals and rhythms in a totally different way (virtually).
  3. Lent began nearly 40 days ago, when our whole world was totally different. Lent is meant to be a time of prayer, preparation and fasting. We are probably all praying, preparing, and fasting, but maybe for different reasons that we originally planned: 
    • What is your prayer during this season?
    • How do you sense God is using this time to prepare you?
    • What are you fasting from–whether by choice, or maybe because your life has changed in a way that has forced you to give up or let go of something you love? 
  4.  Why these symbols– why do you think Jesus gathered the disciples for a meal?
  5.  Why the bread? Why the cup? Why do you think Jesus chose these elements to remind the disciples of his love?

You may choose to celebrate communion together, with whatever bread and cup you have available. You may choose to end with a blessing, or with sharing of prayer concerns. 

Blessing the Bread, the Cup 
A Blessing for Holy Thursday by Jan Richardson

Let us bless the bread 
that gives itself to us 
with its terrible weight, 
its infinite grace.

Let us bless the cup 
poured out for us 
with a love 
that makes us anew.

Let us gather 
around these gifts 
simply given 
and deeply blessed.

And then let us go 
bearing the bread, 
carrying the cup,
 laying the table 
within a hungering world.

tbc Church Business, Testimonies

Visual Testimony: Week of March 29, 2020

Christ is at work among us.

Christ is at work among us. We are an extension of his hands, feet, and heart.

We celebrate the creative use of the the gifts and resources God has given us.
We testify as an expression of gratitude to Jesus, and also to encourage those he his using to bring light in darkness!

Thank you, Tabernacle, for your courage, love, and faithfulness.

Christ is at work among us.

Christ is using the church as an extension of his hands, feet, and heart. Help us testify!

Please send screenshots, written testimonies, and videos to Pastor@tbcrichmond.org. Please just be sure you have permission to share, especially if minors are in the images.

tbc Church Business, Media

Palm Sunday

A poem entitled Palm Sunday, by Malcolm Guite

Now to the gate of my Jerusalem, the seething holy city of my heart, the Savior comes. But will I welcome Him? Oh crowds of easy feelings make a start; They raise their hands, get caught up in the singing, and think the battle is won.Too soon they’ll find the challenge, the reversal He is bringing changes their tune. I know what lies behind the surface flourish that so quickly fades; Jesus, come break my resistance and make me your home. 

Painting, Palm Sunday by Kai Althoff

Readers: Kristen Cavallo and Phil Dawson

Music by Ryan Corbitt