When dinner is life changing.
When dinner is life changing.
Have you ever had a life changing meal?
I don’t mean one that tasted so good that you felt as though you have entered some sort of food bliss.
I’m also not talking about a time when you ate too much and ended up in a food coma… or when you had to eat something horrible so you wouldn’t offend the cook… or when you had food poisoning and you thought it was going to be the end of your life.
What I’m talking about is when a meal with others becomes more than just dinner… but an encounter with Jesus.
I’ve had meals like that.
Where we may be eating, laughing and talking and then before we know it… God is moving in our midst.
There are a lot of stories about life changing meals with Jesus:
- Jesus is eating at a religious leaders home and he forgives and loves a prostitute who comes in to wash his feet with her tears and wipe them with her hair. The leaders mock him for this life changing action.
- Jesus washes his disciples feet and sits with them giving them instructions to remember him every time they eat and drink. He knew they’d eat multiple times a day, just like we do in our lives.
- Jesus invites himself over to Zacchaeus house to eat, even though Zac was seen as a traitor and a thief. His entire life changes during that meal and Zacchaeus gives back FOUR times what he stole… and then gives 50% off all he has to the poor.
Perhaps you are thinking you haven’t had a meal like that… or at least not in recent memory.
I believe that God is still changing lives over the dinner table.
The problem might be… we aren’t looking for it.
Many of us have been participating in The Neighborhood Crawl this summer. We are intentionally trying to step towards what God might be doing in our neighborhoods: the places we live, work, play and learn.
The next challenge is this… have one of your 21 meals this week with a neighbor. You could have them over, eat a picnic at a park, go out to eat… OR…
You could pull a Jesus and invite yourself over to someone’s house!
It may seem strange, but I just got off the phone with my friend Karissa, she went for it and she’s got herself invited over!
I dare you to try it.
During the meal, expect God to be moving… look for it.
Be a “divine detective” listening for what God is up to in the life of your neighbor. Follow God’s lead and be ready to point it out if you see evidence of Jesus moving towards your neighbor.
Trust me, Jesus moved into your neighborhood long before you did.
What might he be up to? How can you be a part of that?
One of the primary places that Jesus changes lives is around the dinner table.
When we realize this… it makes this declaration of his make so much more sense:
I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. – Jesus
John 6:35
When dinner is life changing.
Have you ever had a life changing meal?
I don’t mean one that tasted so good that you felt as though you have entered some sort of food bliss.
I’m also not talking about a time when you ate too much and ended up in a food coma… or when you had to eat something horrible so you wouldn’t offend the cook… or when you had food poisoning and you thought it was going to be the end of your life.
What I’m talking about is when a meal with others becomes more than just dinner… but an encounter with Jesus.
I’ve had meals like that.
Where we may be eating, laughing and talking and then before we know it… God is moving in our midst.
There are a lot of stories about life changing meals with Jesus:
- Jesus is eating at a religious leaders home and he forgives and loves a prostitute who comes in to wash his feet with her tears and wipe them with her hair. The leaders mock him for this life changing action.
- Jesus washes his disciples feet and sits with them giving them instructions to remember him every time they eat and drink. He knew they’d eat multiple times a day, just like we do in our lives.
- Jesus invites himself over to Zacchaeus house to eat, even though Zac was seen as a traitor and a thief. His entire life changes during that meal and Zacchaeus gives back FOUR times what he stole… and then gives 50% off all he has to the poor.
Perhaps you are thinking you haven’t had a meal like that… or at least not in recent memory.
I believe that God is still changing lives over the dinner table.
The problem might be… we aren’t looking for it.
Many of us have been participating in The Neighborhood Crawl this summer. We are intentionally trying to step towards what God might be doing in our neighborhoods: the places we live, work, play and learn.
The next challenge is this… have one of your 21 meals this week with a neighbor. You could have them over, eat a picnic at a park, go out to eat… OR…
You could pull a Jesus and invite yourself over to someone’s house!
It may seem strange, but I just got off the phone with my friend Karissa, she went for it and she’s got herself invited over!
I dare you to try it.
During the meal, expect God to be moving… look for it.
Be a “divine detective” listening for what God is up to in the life of your neighbor. Follow God’s lead and be ready to point it out if you see evidence of Jesus moving towards your neighbor.
Trust me, Jesus moved into your neighborhood long before you did.
What might he be up to? How can you be a part of that?
One of the primary places that Jesus changes lives is around the dinner table.
When we realize this… it makes this declaration of his make so much more sense:
I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. – Jesus
John 6:35