Jesus Dinner

I love food. Food is awesome. And for my family, meals are important. We had family dinner basically everyday when I was growing up, and we still do when I get back. My parents are hosting dessert nights to get to know people in our new church. I can't count the number of times that we had people during holidays, special occasions, and even just random days over for a nice meal and chatting afterwards. I suppose by now you've picked up a theme, meals are a great way to connect with people. Now, I'm going to take this to a slightly different place.


Why isn't every meal the "Lord's Supper?"

And out of the spiritual left field we have this odd question. This thought crossed my mind when I was in church last Sunday during communion. The passage we always here mentions "For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." And communion is always a specific event, usually taken at church. There's prayer and repentance and traditions about how it is taken. Now there's nothing wrong with that, but why is it just these same ideas everywhere?

My family might be the poster family for dinners as socializing and being a part of each others lives. What if we applied that idea to the Lord's Supper? Every meal would not just be the daily catching up, but an invitation to have God come into our conversations and fellowship. It wouldn't be about turning every dinner into a deep theological discussion or time of confession, but a remembrance of what God has done, something to keep in mind as a family reconnected.

What I'm saying is probably not that new. I have heard about people who even set an extra place symbolizing God at the table with them. What I would like to see, however, is a change from a traditional view of communion. Let's not make it a stoic ritual we do whenever the pastor decides to spill the grape juice, but a continual reminder, in daily lives and at churches, of what God has done for us.

Plus it would finally give some meaning to all those church potlucks.

Just something to chew on.