Oh, the invitations that come when we stop to notice what is happening in us, around us, for us, because of us. We see what we didn’t see before. We find feelings we didn’t know were there. We uncover longings to be part of something larger…to belong in a way that matters. Listen to how Jan Richardson puts it:

And the Table Will Be Wide

And the table
will be wide.
And the welcome
will be wide.
And the arms
will open wide
to gather us in.
And our hearts
will open wide
to receive.

 

And we will come
as children who trust
there is enough.
And we will come
unhindered and free.
And our aching
will be met
with bread.
And our sorrow
will be met
with wine.

 

And we will open our hands
to the feast
without shame.
And we will turn
toward each other
without fear.
And we will give up
our appetite
for despair.
And we will taste
and know
of delight.

 

And we will become bread
for a hungering world.
And we will become drink
for those who thirst.
And the blessed
will become the blessing.
And everywhere
will be the feast.

 

– Jan Richardson

If you want to, go back and read this a second time. What pictures come to your mind? What feelings are raised in your heart?  What might it be like to be at that table?  How would you feel?  How do you think you would respond?