By Kat Silverglate, Founder [Copyright 2020]

He’s in college. A junior now. Settled in a place that he loved first through the stories of his father and now through his own experience.  His dad had graduated from Washington & Lee, hunting and fishing on a family-owned mountain there, sharing Sunday dinner with the owners.

Now he finds himself hunting and fishing and sharing table time on that same mountain, but also discovering and securely staking claim to his own territory. A different dorm.  Different fraternity.  A non-liberal arts major that suits his affection for the sciences – bio-chemistry.  And a church home where the love of God and friendship buttress college life.

Perhaps it was this secure feeling that made the encounter with the older gentleman so startling at first.

“Young man, do you mind stepping aside to chat with me for a moment?”

The church service had just finished and a group of students were standing around shooting the breeze when this “elder” in the church community singled him out.

“Oh no,” he thought. “Was I yawning during the service?”

He couldn’t imagine what this stranger could possibly want in a private moment with him.

“Are you a student here son?”

“Yes sir,” he responded.

They chatted for a while about the school and the fact that this man was once a professor there and was now living in the glow of full retirement. And then, seemingly out of the blue, this gentle man made the most curious offer.

“Son, there’s so much wisdom my generation has to offer yours. If you’d ever like to share a meal, just give me a call.”

He then passed him a contact card with his personal information and went on his way. As quickly as the encounter began, it ended. In the days that followed, the questions that must have played in that boy’s head!

“Why me?  Why did he single me out?”

About a week later, on an ordinary Thursday, the boy decided to test the stranger’s promise to save a spot at his table so they could break bread.  The spot was open as promised.  At the end of a wonderful meal, the retired professor bid him farewell in the strangest of ways. He called him “Warren,” which isn’t his name. But it is his father’s name.

Turns out, this professor was his dad’s teacher and college advisor. Neither knew this when they met. They’ll, no doubt, be discussing that over many tables and many meals to come. How amazing is God?

The Scriptures describe the family of God as one full of more mothers and fathers and sisters and brothers and kin than we can possibly handle. Mark 10:29-30. People who love and care for us like they would want their own son, daughter, mother, father, sister, brother, aunt, uncle, grandparent, or dear friend cared for. People who make room at their table the way God does for us!

It’s such a wow reality when it happens. When we slow down to say, “come to the table.”  Come to my table.

Our mission this month is very simple.  In your mobile mission pack, you’ll find a custom name tent card.  We see these name tent cards at special occasions. Weddings. Fancy dinners. Events. They mark our personal place at the table. A special reserved place where only we can sit. When we see a name tent like this, we are reminded that someone made room for us. It feels so very good when someone makes room for us, doesn’t it? Calls us out by name. Lets us know we are valuable.

On one side of the custom tent card, we’ve printed the message “You are Welcome at Our Table.” On the other, you’ll find a blank space for a name. Our challenge this month is to spend some time thinking and praying about someone who needs to know they are welcome at your table.  That they matter.

Write their name on the blank side of the card and mail them an invitation to break bread with you. Or give it to them the next time you see them. Or carry it with you and be ready for God to nudge you to give it away. He’s great at that!

Can you imagine someone telling you in your formative years that YOU are welcome at THEIR table?!?! That’s what God tells us. Come to the table. Come join the sinners who have been redeemed. Come to the table.

Maybe you want to do this with a group or with your church.  We know of a church in Pennsylvania that created a service where a meal was at the center of the sermon.  Imagine using tent cards like these with the words, “You are welcome at our table” and having congregants invite people personally by name to your service.  We know another church that hosted community dinners every Tuesday night. Imagine these little tent cards with the name of the host church on the inside and your congregation writing names of invitees, one name tent at a time, on the outside. Imagine your small group hosting a dinner as a local mission? You get the idea.  Make it your own. 

And of course, safety first.  This goes without saying, but we’ll say it anyway because this story involved a stranger. Healthy boundaries and safety are up to you! Be wise and safe. Children need adult supervision, etc.

As with all our missions, we see them as seeds.  Pray about this one. Put it aside.  Wait for God to tug you.  It may be next week or next month or next year before you act on it. The seed is there. And if this one just isn’t your thing, no worries.  Think about giving the pack away to someone who might love it.  We only ask that you don’t throw it away or copy it without our permission.

As we pray over the mission this month, the song “Come to the Table” by Sidewalk Prophets keeps coming to mind.  It’s the ultimate invitation:

“To the thief, to the doubter. To the hero and the coward. To the prisoner and the soldier. To the young, to the older. All who hunger, all who thirst. All the last, all the first. All the paupers and the princes. All who fail you've been forgiven. All who dream, all who suffer. All who loved and lost another. All the chained, all the free. All who follow, all who lead. Anyone who's been let down. All the lost you have been found. All who've been labeled right or wrong. Everyone who hears this song. Just Come, come to the table … come join the sinners you have been redeemed. Take your place beside the Savior. Just sit down and be set free… Come to the table. Come on now. Come to the table. You're welcome here.”

We can’t wait to hear what God does with this monthly mission.  Your stories keep us encouraged. Our story link is open 24/7 at theridiculoushour.com.

promptings of God.  We sure hope you’re inspired.