Devotion: Build a Table Wherever You Go

“When you have more than you need, build a longer table not a higher fence.” ~ Unknown 

 It was November 2, 2013. I stepped out of the car, approached the caravan as dust gathered on my shoes, and entered the small room (a shipping container, now a makeshift office). Tables skidded on the floor as the shabab (guys) hurriedly prepared the space. Chairs were moved away from the table and stacked along the wall. There would be no need for them. End to end, several tables were placed together.

One was not enough. We needed a longer table.

I have been invited to sit at many tables. This table happened to be in the Zaatari refugee camp in the north of Jordan, where 80,000 Syrians have lived now for over three years, forced to flee their homes, shrouded by the fear of a skeptical and worried world. I had arrived in Jordan less than twenty-four hours before, and this meal was my welcome. We crowded around that table, me and the twenty Syrians and Jordanians I’d just met. Our arms reached across one another to share food, as the room hummed with laughter and conversation. I did not understand the language, but there was no need. I was welcome, no questions asked.

I was captivated by the image of God that day as I experienced deep love in the form of outstretched arms around an open table. Gathering around a table is about much more than sharing a meal.

Jesus sat around a lot of tables. Many stories in Scripture describe him reclining at the table (Luke 7:36, Mark 14:3, Matt. 9:10-13). What a picture of our creator—reclined and relaxed—laughing, embracing, and breaking bread at a table with the very people I fear we would never think of inviting to our own. Instead of saying, “Come, you are welcome here,” we ask questions that push away instead of inviting in. We make excuses, we perpetuate fear, and we build walls.

We build walls for reasons that seem logical, and convince ourselves they are necessary for our own protection. I have stood beside many visible walls, some that keep out the vulnerable. But I have also built my own walls. The invisible walls we construct create barriers that hinder, oppress, hurt, and separate. As we stack each brick—fear, judgment, ignorance, selfishness—the wall becomes more and more impenetrable. Soon, it blocks us from even seeing who is on the other side.

Jesus tore down walls. He built a table long enough for everyone. He has shown us how to do the same. Love breaks down the walls that fear builds, replacing them with open tables at which we can all gather, reaching arms across one another and bearing the image of our God, full of love, reclined, and relaxed. May we build a longer table, not only when we have more than we need, but always.

Always.

Jesus, you have built a table, and we are all invited. You welcome us there as we are—burdened, broken, flawed, and hurting. At your table, we meet our God, reclined and relaxed, and are invited to set aside our fear and burdens. Give us the eyes to recognize who is not at the table, and the courage to break down the walls that have kept them away. Gather us together in love and humility. Amen.

Scripture for Reflection

Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters. Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it. Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies. (Heb. 13:1-3 NLT)

 Reach for More

 The table is a familiar fixture in any home, but as you gather around it this week, pay attention. What do you see? Is it a place where people feel safe to share their vulnerability, their tears, and their laughter? Are the people gathered around it reclined and relaxed? Who is at your table? Who is not?

As you move out beyond your own home, build a table wherever you go. Learn the name and story of someone on the outskirts of the inner circle, walk down the other side of the street and extend an arm to those who have been unwelcome. Offer an open invitation, and love without question.

Please, come back and leave a comment telling us about how God spoke to you this week, or share your progress on social media using the hashtag #tgtreachformore. We would love to hear from you.

Jamie Resler is an unintentional nomad, wandering and wondering through the world with a deep love of adventure, culture, and people. With a heart bent toward the Middle East, she is an advocate for refugees, inspired by resilience and perseverant hope. Through it all, she steadily encounters a world that reflects the image of God intertwined in beauty and brokenness, tears, and laughter.