Read Acts 5:12-16.

When I was in college, I often had to hype myself up before going to dinner in the cafeteria. Most of the time it was the… interesting choices for the dinner menu. There were times, however, where my hesitation came from not knowing where I would sit if I went by myself. I’ll never forget one night when I went alone, some friends saw me from across the cafeteria, and they invited me to join their table. People scooted over and pulled up a chair for me. We were squished, but we were together.

The joy of Advent sets a “pull up a chair” tone. We read in this third week of anticipation about the early church welcoming new people. There is always room for the next believer to join their community. As we read, the same Holy Spirit that creates unity also brings healing. How interesting!

When I think back to those friends pulling up a chair, it did kind of feel like healing. The complicated part of going alone was met with a warm invitation. I can’t overlook the reality that we would sometimes disagree and not all remained life-long friends. There can be woundedness that comes with sharing a table. But, if we invite the Holy Spirit, Acts shows us that there will also be healing.

Challenge:

Spend some time today praying about your “table” (space where you belong or have influence). Who are people you can intentionally invite to join? If the church is called to be a place of hospitality, what role do you play as we partner with God?

Written by Pastor Lauren Miller