Family dinner. As a young child, my earliest memories of my family are gathered around the dinner table. I am the oldest child of three, so no siblings are yet in this memory. My father has just gotten home from work; my mother and I greet him as he steps through the door. Clothes are changed; comfort eases its way into our evening. Someone sets the table. Plates are filled with substance, glasses are filled for hydration. We gather. My parents sit together with me somewhere in the middle. Heads are bowed as thanks is given. We pause. We share food, most likely cooked together by my parents. They tell of the events of the day, share news, and take time to be together. Throughout the years, this scene changes only slightly. Two little boys enter the picture. More plates are added, laughter is heard louder, spills become more frequent, and thanks is given. Hands clasped as we pray together.
My family has always felt that dinner together is important. It stressed the need for communion, community, and openness in sharing our lives with one another. For a few moments we pause the busy schedules, the cleaning of the house, rushing to the next sporting event. We come together and take a moment to be together to share our day. Because of the vast age differences, we scatter in different directions throughout the week. Dinner is a constant – at least now a few times a week it is. We can’t go through life alone; these brief moments of eating together are opportunities to rely on each other and to enjoy one another. This community foundation has become stronger over the years because of these moments at the dinner table. Even if the moments of us all being there are fewer. The laughter, the stories, the listening and caring, the randomly weird topics, the theological discussions (or debates), and most importantly the bonds have been invaluable to the life of our family.
This practice also instilled in me the importance of prayer. In the midst of the rushing, hands clasped, heads bowed, we stop and are reminded of our purpose. We would give the day that had just passed, the future events, worries, and our thanks to the Lord. He would get the glory. Pausing before we ate allows for a perspective shift. No matter the cutting words that had been thrown from girls at school, no matter the poor grade contrasted with a sibling’s excellent grade, no matter the achievement in the band hall, perspectives shifted as we remembered who it was that gave the ability to play music, to interact with the girls at school, to be reminded of what we have been entrusted with.
The example that my parents gave us throughout the years at the dinner table have lent to prayer and community taking precedence in my life. The foundation of faith is seen as my family pauses together. A heart of gratitude, a desire for God’s will, striving for holiness together. Because of the dinner table.
So may you take time to pause, to give thanks, around your dinner table. Share a meal, share your prayers, and share moments.
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