Week 4 | Day 1 | Did You Eat Yet?

Command:

Remember me. Luke 22:19 (NIV)

Read:

They were devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Acts 2:42 (NIV)

Reflect:

“Did you eat yet?” was our oft repeated welcome to college students who gathered at our home every Tuesday night. My husband and I loved opening our home to this disparate group of twenty-somethings, even if it meant we would be sleeping way past our bedtime on a weeknight, and, not to mention, stretching our budget to feed them. One night it would be spaghetti and meatballs; on another, it would be chili and cornbread. Of course, more often than not, it was pizza - boxes and boxes of pizza. Some of them were there just for the food - college kids, remember? But most of them were there to cultivate friendships in a diverse community of friends who were on some sort of faith journey. They’d come not only hungry for pizza, but also hungry to learn more about Jesus, to ask questions about faith, and to boldly challenge what they’d been taught or grew up with. I always marveled that these young adults had nothing better to do on a Tuesday night than to talk about Jesus. 

Jesus’ ministry involved lots of eating and drinking. He was a master at bringing diverse peoples together over a meal. I can imagine Jesus asking of anyone who walked through the door, “Did you eat yet?” All were welcome at his table - from the tax collector to the teacher of the law; from the prostitute to the pharisee. During his final meal with his disciples, Jesus instructed them to remember him whenever they gathered together through the breaking of bread and drinking of wine. These would come to symbolize Jesus’ broken body and blood shed for all. Perhaps this is also what Jesus wants us to remember. By and through his sacrifice, all are invited to his table.

React:

Is there someone Jesus wants you to invite and make room for at your table in remembrance of him?

Pray:

Jesus, thank you for the open invite to come and dine with you.