A Place at the Table
"Tell those who are invited, Behold, I have prepared my banquet; my bullocks and my fat calves are killed, and everything is prepared; come to the wedding feast." (Matt 22:4 AMP)
I was sitting at the kitchen table this afternoon eating my dinner. My two
hungry boys had already finished theirs and taken their plates to the sink.
I wasn’t in a hurry, however. Outside my kitchen window a mother deer and
her two fawns were eating fallen apples around the Apple tree at the far end
of the meadow. Watching them delight in their Heaven sent snack made my own
dinner taste even better so I ate my rice slowly and enjoyed the view.
When I was down to just a few spoonfuls left I felt thirsty and got up to
get myself another cold glass of iced tea. When I turned back to the table,
though, I saw my little dog standing on it finishing off the last of my
rice. She had jumped up on my pushed out chair, bounded up on the table, and
made short work of what was left of my dinner. When she was done she looked
up at me with grateful, big, brown eyes and I didn’t have the heart to scold
her.
After I put my licked clean plate in the sink I petted my dog and smiled. I
thought of my Heavenly Father who loved me so much. He didn’t offer me the
left over scraps of life but instead prepared me a daily feast of love, joy,
friendship, family, beauty, and laughter. Each day I found my plate full to
overflowing with all the blessings God wanted me to have. Each day I was
given not only my daily bread but also His loving company while I ate it.
Each day I found the chair pushed out and my place at the table waiting for
me to join in this banquet of life. All I had to do was sit down, eat, and
ask others to join me as well.
That invitation isn’t just extended to me either. God wants all of you to
join in this banquet. God wants all of you to share in all the good
things in life that nourish our souls. God wants all of you to bring others
to the table as well. Don’t let the feast of life pass you by then. As my
old Italian Grandma used to say, "Mangia, Mangia," (Eat, Eat)!
By: Joseph J. Mazzella