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Advent Devotion: Seeing Each other With New Eyes

Written by Fred & Ginny Karnas Narrated by Mamie Ruth (Hitchens) Blanton

Seeing Each Other With New Eyes

Scripture:  What we see now is like a dim image in a mirror; then we shall see face-to- face.  (I Corinthians 13: 12).

For where two or three come together in My name, I am there with them. (Matthew 18:20)

 Now go to the main streets and invite to the feast as many people as you find. (Matthew 22:9)

Meditation:  James was admitted to the Christ House medical recovery facility looking very disheveled.  His hair was very long, he had a frightened look in his eyes, and his hands shook from many years of alcohol abuse.

We got him a shower, a haircut, a bed, and medicine to pull the poisons from his brain that his damaged liver could no longer neutralize.  We also got him help for his drinking problem.  Slowly the tremor in his hands improved.  Slowly, very slowly, the look of fear in James’ eyes became an off-and-on occurrence instead of constant.  James began to trust our care for him.  He had finally found some peace, and he began to open up and talk.  We had not gotten to know him for who he was until he had had time to know and trust us.

Our Fredericksburg Baptist Church pastor, Larry Haun, shared a similar story with me regarding the new outreach ministry of Community Meals which the church had begun.  Larry said that people who used to approach him on the street for food or money are now sitting and talking with him over the shared meal as you and I would.  Others have reported the same experience to Larry.  People are beginning to know each other as individual persons, instead of “homeless” or “church people.”  They are participating in God’s call to be peacemakers.

There’s a Thursday night tradition at Christ House called Table Fellowship when Christ House patients, former patients who live in a nearby companion-ministry house called Kairos (“God’s time” or “God’s timing”), and friends and staff share a meal, singing, a devotional, the Lord’s Supper, and fellowship.  Fredericksburg Baptist Church’s Community Meal was very similar – a place where barriers between people are getting torn down and Christ is invited to be the Guest of honor.

Prayer:  Thank You, holy and gracious God, for empowering us to become peacemakers by tearing down old walls and building new bridges.  Thank You for blessing us with Your awesome presence when we gather in Your name.  Keep our eyes fixed on You to give us strength for the long haul.  Amen.

Introduction to Ginny and Fred’s Devotion Series

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Advent Devotion: What is Peace?

written by Fred & Ginny Karnas narrated by Penny Jenkins

What is Peace?

Scripture:  Our God is merciful and tender.  He will cause the bright dawn of salvation to rise on us and to shine from heaven on all those who live in the dark shadow of death, to guide our steps into the path of peace.”  (Luke 1:78-79)

Meditation:  As Christmas approaches, songs of peace often emanate from our lips.  But do we know what peace looks like?  

When we initially wrote these devotionals, there was much talk of war in Iraq, even as our nation continued to struggle with the problems in Afghanistan, Palestinian areas, and Israel.  Today, 17 years later, we still are dealing with the remnants of those wars.  And, in other corners of the world, peoples and countries spend their precious resources to take the lives and livelihoods of their neighbors.   Despite the current state of the world, the Christmas journey calls us toward peace.   But what does peace look like in a world so torn apart?  Isaiah (65:18-24 CEV) offers this alternative for our world:

Celebrate and be glad forever!

I am creating a Jerusalem full of happy people;

I will celebrate with Jerusalem and all of its people;

There will be no more crying or sorrow in that city.

No child will die in infancy;

Everyone will live to a ripe old age.

Anyone a hundred years old will be considered young, and to die younger than that will be considered a curse.

My people will live in the houses they build;

They will enjoy grapes from their own vineyards.

No one will take away their homes or vineyards.

My chosen people will live to be as old as trees,

 and they will enjoy what they have earned.

Their work won’t be wasted, 

and their children won’t die of dreadful diseases.

I will bless their children and their grand children. 

I will answer their prayers before they finish praying.

It is a long way from the place described by Isaiah to where our world finds itself today, and yet it is not an impossible journey from here.  To paraphrase a former National Security Administration official, we can bomb Afghanistan and chase al Qaeda around the world but we will fail if we do not see that the best deterrent against terrorism is hope.  In a world where hundreds of millions of people go to bed hungry each night, and where hate still rules many nations, it is not a hard leap to understand why some misguided young men and women are willing to sacrifice their lives for any cause which even remotely promises a better life for their families.  They are literally hopeless.  In their minds they have nothing to lose.

The promise of Isaiah can only be achieved when we really understand that the scriptures call us to do justice.  The gift of Christmas is the freedom in God’s love to seek this goal knowing that He is there to help us over the hard spots.   We are called to give hope to the hopeless even in today’s very difficult world. Clarence Jordan offers some guiding words for those who commit to taking on the daunting task of working for peace in a troubled world:

It seems to me that He (Jesus) said something like this: “Fellows, this is it. You think you’ve already been through a lot. You’re just getting started.  As you walked up these steps and came into My kingdom, I made it clear to you that you were there by making an all-out commitment. I charge you now to be faithful, cost what it may. But don’t let them scare you or bully you or make you back down.  Rejoice that you’ve been counted worthy to be on our side.  You’re in a great company of prophets whose glorious past stretches back to the beginning of time and whose future has no end. So, go to it. I’m with you.”

Prayer:   Lord, continually remind us of the song of peace sung by the angels that Christmas so long ago, and give us the strength to be Christ’s peacemakers in the world today.

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Advent Devotion: My Grace is Sufficient

written by Fred and Ginny Karnas narrated by Woody Jenkins

Scripture:  … I was given a painful physical ailment . . . Three times I prayed to the Lord about this and asked Him to take it away.  But His answer was “My grace is all you need, for my power is strongest when You are weak.”  (II Corinthians 12: 7b, 8, & 9a).

And God’s peace, which is far beyond human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe in union with Christ Jesus.  (Philippians 3:7)

Meditation:  I have known many dear friends who live or lived with a “thorn in the flesh” which God, for reasons known only to Himself, chose not to remove, giving each of these dear people grace and peace instead.

Victor suffers from severe insulin-dependent diabetes and painful spasms in his legs.  He prayed that God would save his right leg from amputation, but instead God graced him with a wonderful attitude; a determination that gave him the ability  to walk with a prosthesis; a terrific smile and sense of humor; and a peace and a gratitude to God for life that caused staff members and other patients at Christ House to try harder, too.

Raul, another patient, was not delivered of the “thorn” of terminal cancer, but God gave him the gracious gifts of reunion with estranged family members; renewal of his faith; the assurance of forgiveness of his past sins; and a place he came to know as home where he peacefully departed this world with caring medical staff and family at his side.

Carolyn was not to win her battle with cancer, either, but that did not stop her from spreading her love.  Despite her terminal cancer and her bipolar disorder, God’s grace, peace, and love shone through her.  She would always be the first person at Christ House to buy and circulate a greeting card for anyone’s birthday.  And she helped out in the dining hall there until a day or two before she died.  She departed this world in peace and victory.

Our friends Kathy from Richmond and Becky from Phoenix, and Ethel from Fredericksburg all fought their terminal illnesses so valiantly.  Each prayed earnestly for healing.  Friends and family and sometimes just acquaintances and total strangers prayed fervently for healing, but in the end God took them to their heavenly home.  And yet, in their relatively short lives God’s very-evident grace and peace produced so much love in action.  Kathy, Becky, and Ethel were “doers of the Word, not hearers only.”  All three were doing for others nearly up to the day they passed into an everlasting life of joy and peace.

Before Ethel departed, it was my great privilege on several occasions to sit at her bedside and sing softly to her.  When she could she would join me, singing in a faint voice.  One hymn we sang was “For All the Saints [Who From Their Labors Rest],” with words by William W. How set to the beautiful music by Ralph Vaughan Williams.  Verses 2, 5, and 6 go like this:

Thou wast their rock, their fortress, and their might;

Thou, Lord, their captain in the well-fought fight;

Thou, in the darkness drear, their one true light.

Alleluia, Alleluia!

And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,

Steals on the ear the distant triumph song,

And hearts are brave again, and arms are strong.

Alleluia, Alleluia!

From earth’s wide bounds, from ocean’s farthest coast,

Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,

Singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost:

Alleluia, Alleluia!

Prayer:  Lord God, often we do not understand Your ways.  Nevertheless, help us to be ever-growing in Your grace this Christmas season and all our lives, for You in Your peace-giving grace are sufficient for all our needs.  Amen.

Introduction to Ginny and Fred’s Devotion Series

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Advent Devotion: For us…

Written by Ginny Karnas Narrated by Cole Severns

Scripture:  Peace is what I leave with you; it is My own peace that I give you.  I do not give it as the world does.  Do not be worried and upset; do not be afraid.”  (John 14:27)

Meditation:  When we moved to Fredericksburg in 1991 our two daughters were in the middle of fourth and seventh grades.  After a few days in their new school it became very apparent that our younger daughter was having great difficulty adjusting.  There were many tears and a real dread of going to school.  Despite the fact that my husband and I had prayed about and felt a definite calling to move to Virginia, I began to be upset regarding our daughter’s distress and to feel somehow that God was asking us to sacrifice our children’s well-being for this calling we had answered.  Each morning I practically begged God to give each of them a good day at school.

Then came my peace.  I had a devotional book that contained a passage about Abraham who, of course, was asked by God to take his precious and only son, Isaac, up the mountain to be offered up as a sacrifice to God.  The author of the passage, Carlo Carretto, writes that:

God,  wrapt round the colossal figure of this patriarch alone in the desert, . . . wants to communicate with the depths of Abraham’s being and tear him from himself and his involvement with his own  problems, which are like self-centered possessions; He wants to make this creature of His “more His,”  this man who is destined not for the tents of earth, but for those of Heaven.  So God asks of him an absurd trial, as love is absurd for anyone who does not live it, but as true and relentless as love for anyone who possesses it. . ..  What a drama was in the poor heart of that man!  God had asked the supreme sacrifice. If Abraham had had to turn the knife on himself it would have been easier!

My peace came as I believed that through this passage God was saying to me, “Remember, Ginny, that Abraham did not end up having to sacrifice his son, and neither will you be sacrificing your daughters.  Everything is going to be okay.”  And peace came, too, as the passage reminded me of God’s awesome presence always, but especially when He is asking us to do something that’s really hard for us to do.  There are times when God does ask us to complete other kinds of sacrifices, but this time God wanted Abraham’s trust, not his son.  That assurance gave me great peace.

The peace continued to flow as our Pastor Emeritus, Howard Cates, paid a visit with a deck of Uno cards and his loving support.  Soon he had our daughter talking and laughing again as she played Uno with a new friend she could trust in this new place.  And then Howard’s wife, Betty Jo, had us all over for dinner, and we played Uno again!  God had wrapped His arms around all of us through Howard and Betty Jo.  And God continued to show His presence throughout our future years in Fredericksburg, giving both our girls a true home, and blessing us in countless ways.

Abraham was spared the sacrifice of his son, but God willingly gave the ultimate sacrifice of His precious and only Son for us.  What will we give Him in return this Christmas?

What can I give Him, poor as I am?

If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;

If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;

Yet what I can I give Him:  give my heart.      (Christina G. Rossetti)

Prayer:  Holy God and Giver of peace and salvation, thank You for the very intimate ways You care for us and give us Your peace.  May we in turn be instruments of Your peace, spreading it to others as we journey onward.  Amen.

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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.

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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