Linda Buishas
Whether it’s “Dinner is served,” “Dinner is ready,” “Come and get it!” or other words inviting family and friends to “Come gather at the table,” similar terms will echo in millions of homes on Thanksgiving Day, inviting guests to share a special meal. One of the unwavering rules in my childhood home was that everyone must come to the table at dinnertime. To this day, when my husband and I host parties, I enjoy mealtime most when we are all seated at the same table.
It seems natural for us to have a longing to gather at the table to enjoy a meal that sustains us, to share the most recent chapters of our lives and, hopefully, God’s blessings in them. When this replenishment of body and soul takes place, it seems to send a message to our hearts that this is right. Could it be that gathering at the table is symbolic of our need for the connections for which we are all designed, divine and human relationships?
It’s no coincidence that Jesus chose a gathering for a meal to be the centerpiece for His relationship with us and how we relate to one another. Jesus purposefully gathered His disciples around Him at the Last Supper, and although it didn’t resemble the dinner tables of today, He invited them to take and eat and drink. He demonstrated how He is the meal to be served up for us all to partake, forever reminding us of the saving work of the Cross and our unity with Him.
We are invited to salvation by God’s Grace. Through Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection, He proved His love and made us acceptable. Through this invitation, He shows us that we are valued, and through His sacrifice, we are made worthy.
As the Master of the house in the parable of the Great Banquet, God extends an open invitation to everyone to the most lavish feast of all. He leaves no one out. The only thing we are asked to bring is faith. Come to the table, exactly as we are, and we will forever be changed. At the table of salvation, we all become righteous in God’s eyes; for Jesus has made us so, and forevermore, when God looks at us, He beholds His Son in us. How great a gift to be thankful for!
As we gather around tables with family and friends on this Thanksgiving Day, may love, joy, and gratitude abound. Most importantly, let us make a place for Jesus in our hearts. Come to His table of Salvation. No RSVP required. And bring a friend! God wishes every place at the table to be filled.
(Psalm 23:5-6: “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.”)