by Debra K. Farrington

I don’t know what your dinner table is like, but mine is definitely not one out of those idyllic meals from a 1950s TV show. My pre-teen stepson usually has to be pried away from whatever he’s doing and comes to dinner grudgingly, especially if we’re eating something he’s not fond of, which is anything besides pizza or macaroni and cheese. My husband and I, frequently tired from a long day, work on preparing the meal, and then plop down in our chairs. We are not often at our best at dinner time, at least not at the start of the meal. This is supposed to be a foretaste of the feast in God’s Kingdom?

Perhaps my image of the feast in God’s Kingdom has been colored by Norman Rockwell paintings: bountiful meals shared by smiling families delighting in each other’s company. Well, meals in my house don’t look like that. Come to think of it, they are more like the meals recounted in the Gospels than the ones in the Rockwell paintings.

Think about it. At the Last Supper, Jesus tells the disciples that someone has betrayed him. In Luke’s account (Luke 22:24), an argument breaks out among the disciples about who is the greatest. At Mary and Martha’s house, Jesus has to mediate between an angry Martha and Mary who would rather sit and learn than help with hospitality. At other meals, people argued with Jesus when he let a woman wash his feet, or they complained later that he ate with tax collectors. Norman Rockwell scenes these are not.

Maybe like the people in the Gospel stories, we come to meals at home and church with whatever baggage we happen to be carrying, hoping for transformation. Those who sat at the table with Jesus received physical nourishment, but they were also fed spiritual food. At the Last Supper and the feast with his disciples after his death, Jesus not only ate with them, he told his disciples what was coming and encouraged them to spread God’s Kingdom. Maybe we, too, are meant to listen for wisdom, to experience transformation at mealtimes.

My stepson, Christian, is in that pre-teen phase that values monosyllabic responses. ("What did you do today?" "Stuff.") This kind of conversation is often an irritating start to what is supposed to be a nice family dinner. But more often than not, transformation does occur during the meal. My husband, Marley, and I relax and connect once dinner is served and we take time to talk about our day. Christian usually comes around too, offering more than monosyllables if we are patient. Most of the time, by dinner’s end we are more connected to each other and to God.

Perhaps our dinner times are, after all, a taste of the Kingdom to come, a meal where each of us comes as we are, and if we are willing and attentive, we are transformed. Perhaps your dinner table is a glimpse of that heavenly feast as well.

Debra K. Farrington has written eight books of Christian spirituality. Check out her Web site at www.debrafarrington.com

This article is published in the January/February 2008 issue of Lutheran Woman Today.

We're glad you enjoyed this online preview of Lutheran Woman Today. But there is so much more inside each issue. For just 3 cents a day, you can receive a year's worth of LWT's award–winning graphics and articles in your own home. Don't miss another issue — Subscribe now!