God Moving At Maranatha

Table Fellowship

There is something about just coming together around food and fellowship that really changes the tone of a gathering. You meet, you eat, you connect.

Our Young Adults have been sharing meals together periodically ahead of their lesson on Tuesday nights at the church, and this may hint at part of the reason for their rapid growth in participation.

We all need a place we can just be and be together.

In terms of discipleship, I think of this as cultivating a sense of belonging. God wants us to know that we belong. We belong to Him, and so we belong in His home, His church, among our brothers and sisters. There is a place for you, here. There is always an empty chair.

This past Saturday (January 14) we had the Mother, Daughter, Friend Celebration. It was a time for women of all ages to come, bring a friend, or a daughter. The youngest was age two, the oldest age was 95 (not including the two infant boys who snuck into the girls gathering with their mothers). They ate, they laughed, they played, and they had a photobooth. The food was unreal, from what my wife tells me. It was just fun. The purpose was for women to invite women to a place where they could simply “Be.” And that place was God’s house!

All the women who gathered are still buzzing about it.

Recently, the Hospitality Team shared a meal together. Plans are being put in place for a monthly Newcomers Connex Luncheon after church. Alpha, which is the first letter in the Greek alpha-bet, will begin with a meal. It’s often the first step to a conversation and relationship with God and His people.

I’m excited about how table fellowship is bringing people together, often as a first step to bringing us all closer to God.

God wants us too simply, “Be.” Be still. Be in His Presence. Be enjoying life together. Life is better together, isn’t it?

It seems table fellowship is trending at Maranatha, and I can see how God is moving through it all. I’m excited about it! And I’m not the only one. Just go ask the ladies.

-Pastor Mike