Sunday Dinner

Sunday lunches were a big deal growing up in the South.  There were two particular meals that were my favorite and to this day, I cannot eat a meal that compares with them.  One was succulent roast with brown gravy, mashed potatoes, and some kind of green vegetable.  The other was almost the same but a change in meat: fried chicken!  I have not had fried chicken that good since!!  I absolutely cherish the memory of sitting down at the table with my parents and sister on Sundays after church. 

What if that were the only meal a person had all week?  Think about coming to the table starving.  You would not think about taste or the enjoyment of the meal and fellowship, but you would be ravaged by hunger.  There would not be the wonderful distinguishing factor of aroma and flavors, but only the need to fill a void crying out for health and relief from the distress of starvation.

I was thinking recently about the wonder and life-giving process afforded me by daily Bible study.  God blessed me, a non-reader, with a hunger for His word when He saved me.  And I continue to enjoy this jewel of truth even after forty years of being a believer.  I cannot imagine being a healthy or happy Christian without it.  And I also thought how like a banquet is the message God gives our pastor on Sunday mornings.  The Sunday message is a coming together of believers and seekers to a feast prepared by God.  How famished I would be had I not been daily nourished.  And what wonderful unity I find through God’s message when I’ve been in His word all week.  I can distinguish the aroma and flavor because He has been filling my void all week long with the nourishment of His word. 

Be nourished daily and come together weekly to feast at the banquet prepared by God.  And I look forward to the banquet Jesus has prepared for us in heaven.  That will be one rich and luxurious meal that will exceed my memory of juicy roast and crisp fried chicken.