Return To Category List
Supper
Do you think there will ever be a day when families will eat their meals standing up, at separate times, in the car, on the run, or in different rooms of the house? If that question had been asked forty years ago, there would have been laughter everyhwere. The thought of families eating at seperate times was unthinkable. The prospect of family members taking a plate and eating in seperate rooms or in the same room but in different places only existed for in the imagination of science fiction writers. Warming of meals instantly with the push of button was not imaginable. It was just as unimaginable as microwave hamburgers and french fries, pop tarts, and Chinese food. It was unimaginable because 40 years ago, meal time was not so much about food as it was about family fellowship, communication and memorable moments. While it was unimaginable 40 years ago, that scenario does exist today. The family meal, which was once the focal point of the day, is now reserved for special occasions. In fact, Thanksgiving has become one of the most sacred holidays in the nation, not for its spiritual implications, but because its one of the rare opportunities for the entire family to sit down at the same table and share a meal.
The old folks had rules about family meals. Family meals were safe. A child who made a bad grade wouldn't get criticized at the dinner table. There was no business discussed at dinner. No lectures, arguments or sulking was allowed at the family meal. The family meal was light. It involved the funny things that happened a school and work. It involved talk about family plans for vacations, trips and weekends. It involved fellowship that made everyone feel good. Anyone who broke the rules would surely here one of the older family members say, not at the dinner table...this is not the place.
It's also a time that the head of the family, acting as the family minister, offers prayers for his family's safety and strength. It's a time when the family sees dad or the mom whose wearing his hat, in a spiritual light. They see the family leader as God's representative in the home.
We lose a lot, when we lose the family meal. We lose an opportunity to see ourselves, in one setting, as special units in the kingdom of God.
As believers, we enjoy the fellowship of family and friends who dine at the banquet table of our Lord. It is a happy time, and time of rejoicing for it is a time of promise.
Today, God is preparing a table for you; eat and enjoy!