It sounds like the beginning of a really good, probably uncomfortably inappropriate, politically (in)correct joke, doesn't it? It's actually the table I've been dreaming of this morning. It's an imagined table of some of very dear friends.
I love my birth family, the ones who look and sound and think like me. The ones who get to call me by a familiar nickname. I look forward to Thanksgiving with them this week, the laughing loudly, the talking rapidly over one another, the recalling and retelling of family folklore, the enjoying foods I crave all year long.
I am also keenly aware this week that I have an incredible faith family.
My faith family is the group of people that come together not because of shared history or culture or family tree. We are united simply and powerfully by a common Spirit. The Spirit of God dwells in each of us by grace through faith, and that Spirit unites us in purpose and calling and overcomes a multitude of barriers. In my mind's eye, I picture that very diverse table, and I do not see what an outsider would see. I do not see color, label, marital status, ability, or ethnicity. I see my brothers and sisters, those who labor alongside me for the sake of the Gospel that more would come to the Table. And, I rejoice. My heart swells when I think that infinitely-wise God saw fit to count me among them.
The mystery is that people who have never heard of God and those who have heard of him all their lives ... stand on the same ground before God. They get the same offer, same help, same promises in Christ Jesus. The Message is accessible and welcoming to everyone, across the board.
Ephesians 3:5-6 (MSG)
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