Let me start by saying: It all came from a place of love.
There we were, all standing around the dining table, ready to eat. Before us was a table laden with all manner of aromatic foods. There was roast beef with potatoes and carrots, fried chicken, baked ham, chicken-fried steak, black-eyed peas, macaroni and cheese, green beans with salt pork, mashed potatoes, creamed corn, fruit salad, Aunt Erma’s chocolate sheet cake (half with nuts, half without), chocolate cream pie, fresh blackberries, lemon bars, snickerdoodles, cherry cheese pie, banana bread, and peanut butter Rice Crispy bars.
And we couldn’t eat any of it.
No, it wasn’t Thanksgiving or Easter or Christmas or any other holiday. It was just Sunday lunch at Ma’s. As the family matriarch, she would, from time to time, invite all of her grandchildren over. It made for a very crowded table at Sunday lunch.
That didn’t matter to Ma. This was her opportunity to do the thing she loved most: make each of her grandchildren feel loved and special. And Ma’s love language was food. Whenever a grandchild came for a meal, Ma always made their favorite food. She never forgot what food each one loved and she always served it—even when all of them were gathered.
As you might expect, preparing and cooking all of those different foods for the same meal could challenge even the most experienced chef. And getting it all to the table, hot, was its own kind of special miracle. But, for the most part, Ma pulled it off. Entree after entree, side dish after side dish, dessert after dessert, Ma got it all to the table in time for us to sit down together and enjoy ourselves.
With one exception.
After we were called in to lunch, and stood around the table staring at all that great variety of food, we would hear Ma call out from the kitchen, “Y’all go ahead on! I’m just going to wait for these rolls to come out of the oven.”
I thought of this oft-repeated scenario when I read this week’s scripture from 1 Samuel. It’s the story of Samuel’s visit to Bethlehem.
He was God’s chosen messenger and he had come to Bethlehem on a secret mission. Israel was to have a new king—a person to replace the current king. Samuel had come to anoint that future king, and he did so under the cover of making a sacrifice to God. Jesse and family were invited to join in. Only Samuel knew that God would choose one of Jesse’s sons to be that new king.
Everyone remained standing as long as he remained standing, which Samuel did as Jesse brought each of his sons before him, one at a time. None of them were God’s choice for king. Then, upon learning that David, the seventh and youngest, was still in the field watching over the flock, Samuel said, “Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here.”
It was like our dilemma at Ma’s Sunday lunches. What to do? We were there because Ma invited us. She was due our respect because of who she was. We absolutely were not going to “go ahead on.” Even though someone allows you to be disrespectful, it doesn’t mean you should act that way. And so, nobody sat down until Ma joined us, fresh rolls in hand.
No doubt, many wished Samuel had said something like “Y’all go ahead on.” But even if he had, I doubt many would have taken him up on the offer. As Israel’s prophet (and final Judge), Samuel was a man to be respected—and feared. Until he concluded the business for which he had come—God’s business—nobody sat down.
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PHOTO: Collection of Pattie Orr
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I hope you can join us Friday morning at DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast: food, fellowship, prayer, scripture, and "a robust exchange of ideas." Continuing at Our Breakfast Place (and on Zoom**), we usually get going around 8:00-ish and find it hard to leave by 9:00. It's the laughter.
Oh, sure, someone's in charge, but only God is on the throne.
Blessings,
Steve
**Contact me for the Zoom link
NOTE: Zoom allows you to mute the camera and the microphone if you don’t wish to be seen or heard.
SCRIPTURES FOR SUNDAY AND THE COMING WEEK
Find them here:
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/texts.php?id=27
Print them here:
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/pdf//Ax_FourthSundayinLent.pdf
1 Samuel 16:1-13
Psalm 23
Ephesians 5:8-14
John 9:1-41
Fourth Sunday in Lent (March 19, 2023)
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