When Meals Are Not Just Meals

Now I'm sitting in front of my dest, working. It's almost noon and I haven't had anything yet except one chocolate chip and see salt cookie (from Sassafras and it's really good), and a cup of coffee. I'm staring at my computer screen but my mind is at somewhere else. I'm thinking about what I should have for lunch and who I want to eat with. Eating is one of the most important things in my life and sharing meals with someone is a way of showing my affection to them.

During my first month here at IFI, I learnt that meals are important on so many different levels. Particularly here at IFI, sharing a meal with someone shows hospitality. It is a gathering where the death and resurrection of Jesus is celebrated and where the message of salvation is communicated through food. I had so many good times at IFI and the most memorable moments so far are related to food and meals. 

The first big gathering of all the ISEEDers, apprentices and our bosses (Phil and Russ) involved a lot of learning to pronounce hard Mediterranean food names and making tough decisions on what to order. More importantly, it served as a great opportunity for us to get to know one another and share the importance of meals in the different backgrounds we grew up in. It was interesting to find out that almost everyone viewed meals as something with significance. We also got to know more about all the staffs at IFI during the apple picking at Phil's uncle's house and lunch at Gene's house. It almost became natural to us to share about stories in our lives either related to Christ or not. I can truly feel that there are connections being made and relationships being built at the table. 

Just like what's written in A Meal With Jesus, Christian community's meals are for many things. It expresses God's grace, reinforces the community that God has created, and shows us what it's like to live under God's reign. Without God's creation, it's hard to imagine that any of these would even happen. 

There might be many ways to define the word meal just as the internet defines it as the food eaten on regular occasions. However, there are so many things other than food and other than its literal meaning associated with this word. 

It's really not hard to see that love, grace and community is deeply rooted in meals and they became inseparable parts. Jesus lives His life as a perfect illustration of it and we should too.