Sterling Severns Abundant Community, Community Ministry, Life of the Community, Rule of Life Together

See You at the Corner of Emmaus and Grove

Learning to See: Join us this Thursday, Oct. 24 at 6-8 p.m.

Just days earlier, they had witnessed Jesus’ brutal death in Jerusalem, leaving them overwhelmed with grief and uncertainty. Two of His followers, one named Cleopas and the other unnamed, now walk the road to Emmaus, their minds swirling with questions. How could this have happened? What if everything they believed was wrong? What next? Along the way, they find themselves hosting a stranger, and as they walk, they speak repeatedly of the burden of failure. As the sun begins to set, stillness—the great amplifier of anxiety—settles in. Broken hearts break bread together, and then it happens—the stillness is broken with the miraculous. Eyes are opened, the presence of the risen Christ is made known, and the presumed hosts find themselves invited yet again into a future wide open.

The Emmaus Road is long, and while you won’t see it on any map, it intersects at every corner in the city we call home. Just after the pandemic, Alcoholics Anonymous began meeting weekly in the “Blue Room” of the little church at the corner of Emmaus and Grove. There, each week, just after the sun goes down, the brokenhearted gather together and inevitably find themselves less alone than they thought they were. Stories of brokenness, despair, healing, and transformation are shared in that space. It’s on the road to Emmaus the future is resurrected, one broken heart at a time, one step at a time.

This Thursday, I’d like to invite you to the corner of Emmaus and Grove. We’ll gather together with one of the leaders of the AA meeting that takes place every Wednesday in the Blue Room. We’ll hear stories, and perhaps some of us will even feel called to share some of our own. Perhaps, in the sharing of stories and also in the stillness—the great amplifiers of God’s presence—we’ll all catch a glimpse of a resurrected future?  Perhaps we, each and every one of us as guests, might leave that place more resolved to keep walking, one step at a time, toward that future together?

I hope to see you there.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Sterling W. Severns
Pastor

Details for Thursday, October 24, 2024:

  • Time: 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
  • Location: Blue Room, Tabernacle Church
  • Dinner: Pizza and salad provided
  • RSVP: Please e-mail communications@tbcrichmond.org
April Kennedy Community Ministry, Testimonies

Glimpses of the Kingdom: How God Provided on Our Busiest Day

Saturday marked the busiest day of community ministry this year, with over 140 families coming through our doors. It was amazing! We had been moving steadily for over an hour when I had a brief conversation with Sterling. He mentioned he’d heard it was a “slow morning.” I couldn’t help but laugh, knowing full well it was anything but slow.

What we experienced was God providing exactly what was needed, often before we even realized we needed it. Take the neighbor who stepped up to manage sign-ins outside, confidently giving directions in English and Spanish while I helped by making name tags. There was also a neighbor couple who jumped in without hesitation, assisting in the clothes closet and preparing cold bags for others, their faces beaming with smiles. A neighbor we’ve just started getting to know offered to take out the trash whenever he is here. A new VCU student stepped right in to shop with neighbors, and another new volunteer spent a long time attempting to bring order to the chaos of toiletries in the pantry.

Each of these moments was a small glimpse of the Kingdom of God—expanding into a beautiful picture of who we are becoming together: a place where we all belong and where we can all love and be loved.

tbc Art of Neighboring, Community Ministry, Life of the Community

Come and See

Standing in the stairway, welcoming a neighbor into the building, our conversation follows a familiar path. “How is your family? You know I’m always going to ask you that because I know your family is important,” they say. This neighbor, despite their own complex family history and solitude living situation, consistently takes the time to ask about my loved ones. There is nothing unusually deep or unique about the conversation, yet it yields empathy and compassion. It’s the moment I see the best of my neighbor.

This is when I recognize Christ in my neighbors face. It’s this moment where we are genuinely caring for each other, that I see a more complete picture of my neighbor. This pushes me towards deeper empathy and understanding.

Holy moments happen all the time. They unfold in normal conversation, with the participants leaving knowing they were on holy ground. They don’t depend on your ability to fix or assist, but rather on simply being present and authentically engaging with others.

Amidst the holy moments on Saturday mornings, we offer a hot meal, food and clothes. Food might be the “why” that brings people into the building but it should not trump getting to know our neighbors. When we look at our neighbors with love, we see the best parts of them—we see Jesus. Come and see.

-April

Saturday, May 18, 7:30 – 11:15 a.m. We would love for you to join us on Saturday morning. There is an opportunity for everyone: signing in neighbors, cooking breakfast, assisting neighbors with shopping, restocking, organizing clothes, loading cars and of course the best opportunity of all— enjoying time with neighbors around the table. 

Please sign up and let the team know you are coming! 

https://docs.google.com/…/1FAIpQLSf4HUJAN7dD2l…/viewform

tbc Community Ministry, Lenten Devotion

Community Lenten Devotional: Week 3

As we journey through this Lenten season, particularly this season in the time of pandemic, examining what it means to be a people of God in this time and in our various places, we ask you to consider participating in the Community Ministry of Tabernacle Baptist Church.  Use this Lenten prayer calendar to guide you. Your gifts are appreciated by them and by the Community Ministry Team and our neighbors. Your prayers mean the world to us. 

March 3        
It is Wednesday again. As you sit down to eat dinner, remember a meal and fellowship that you have shared around tables in our church house.  Add food to your bag that makes you happy. Pray for the happiness of our neighborhood. Give thanks for the meals that you have shared, and will share in the future in the Tabernacle fellowship hall.

March 4       
Thank God for your body and the ways you can keep it healthy. Include cans of your favorite vegetable and pray for those who don’t have access to food that is healthy. Add your favorite seasoning to put on that vegetable to remind yourself that eating healthy can be a delicious privilege.

March 5        
Pray for someone who doesn’t get to shower every day or maybe even every week.  Add some deodorant to your bag. Give thanks for the running water in your house.

March 6        
Pray for people who wake up in the morning and do not have a hot cup of something to help get their day started. Add some of your favorite coffee (ground or instant), tea or hot chocolate to your bag. (Maybe add some sugar, sweetener, creamer-whatever you put in your beverage.) Give thanks for yourself, and those around you, that you do not have to go anywhere without your morning beverage.

March 7        
Sunday is a feast day in the season of Lent. Pray for our neighbors who live our of doors. For someone who has nowhere to cook, meat in a can is appreciated.  Add some Vienna Sausage, Spam, tuna or chicken to your bag (pop top cans please).  Give thanks for the feasts that you share with your family.

March 8        
Pray for the mother who asks her mother every night at bedtime: Did you brush your teeth? Put toothbrushes in your bag so there is one less thing she will have to worry about. (Single packs, please.) Give thanks that you have a toothbrush in a cup by your sink.

March 9        
Pray for the kid who needed a toothbrush yesterday. Add some toothpaste to your bag so they can take care of the baby teeth that are coming in or the new teeth that came to replace them. Give thanks for the toothpaste next to the cup by your sink.

Go back and see the Week 1 Devotional or the Week 2 Devotional if you missed it.

tbc Community Ministry, Lenten Devotion

Community Lenten Devotional: Week 2

As we journey through this Lenten season, particularly this season in the time of pandemic, examining what it means to be a people of God in this time and in our various places, we ask you to consider participating in the Community Ministry of Tabernacle Baptist Church.  Use this Lenten prayer calendar to guide you. Your gifts are appreciated by them and by the Community Ministry Team and our neighbors. Your prayers mean the world to us. 

February 24  
Pray for families that gather for dinner tonight. In previous and future years, Wednesday is the day we gather as a church family for dinner. As we gather physically in our homes, and spiritually in our hearts, imagine there is someone else at your table.  Add to the bag the ingredients of a meal for them.  (Use your imagination and go wild, or put in a can of beef stew.) Give thanks for all of the meals that we share at Tabernacle.

February 25        
Pray for people who walk everywhere that they go. Add some nice heavy warm socks to your bag so that they can have warm, dry, clean feet. Give thanks that your feet are warm and dry.

February 26    
Pray for a family that is gathered on a Friday night to watch a movie, or play games. Add a box of your favorite cookies or microwave popcorn for them to share.  Give thanks for your own family as you imagine them laughing together, 

February 27      
Pray for a parent giving their kids a bath, washing off the dust of a Saturday playing. Put some soap or body wash, and maybe a washcloth in your bag. Give thanks that you get to give your kid a bath, or that you do not.

February 28    
Sunday is a feast day in the Lenten season. Pray for a family that will share a meal today.  Add some spaghetti (1lb box) and pasta sauce to your bag so that their may be a feast. Pray for the feasts that you appreciate with your family.

March 1        
It is March, so who knows what the weather will be like. If it is cold, there is certainly someone who would appreciate a bowl of soup to help them feel warm.  Add a couple of cans of soup, and maybe some crackers to go with it, to your bag. Pray for those who may not have a hot meal today.  Give thanks for food that warms you body and soul.      

March 2          
Pray for people who spend a lot of time outside. Add a pair of gloves and/ or a warm hat for them to your bag. Give thanks that you have somewhere to warm your hands.