(If you want the recipe, skip all the words and scroll straight to the bottom.)
It all began with a quick snapshot of an almost overflowing pot of Chicken Tortilla Soup…and then there were recipe requests. (I personally like those kinds of comments on Facebook.) I was going to quickly type it out in the comments, but then I thought, “Maybe this instead…”
October 3, my mentor Sally Clarkson launches her next book, The LifeGiving Table, along with its companion The LifeGiving Table Experience, A Guided Journey of Feasting Through Scripture. I have sat at Sally’s table, in a chair or on a sofa in her home, and at a table covered with white linen at her conferences. I remember sitting many mornings before the sun and the kids (barely, ha!) woke up, devouring every word of encouragement she would share in her blogs and books. I desperately needed the guidance of a wise, godly momma who had gone before me.
The LifeGiving Table causes my heart to leap as I think fondly of my own table. Most days one end serves as my desk, full of binders and books and the computer I’m currently typing on, while the centerpieces fight to make things shine beautiful and inviting. And I chuckle because I do believe our table is inviting…inviting mason jars filled with sweet tea, sippy cups filled with chocolate milk, coffee cups full of something strong and bold, homework papers, pencils and pens, plates of food, and food and crumbs that fall off the plates. Here kids, who normally tell each other to go away, decide to finally want to play with each other as they sit across the table from each other at dinner! Here we talk about Sunday sermons and thoughts from His Word, we challenge kids who aren’t motivated, we correct and discipline children who are testing waters and crossing boundaries; here we pray over meals and fight to sit beside each other as well as tell each other to “Stop that!” and “Sit down!” and “Ask for it to be passed, don’t reach across!” At our table we share wisdom, reveal foolishness, get loud and stern, get loud and laugh. We also get to fill our benches every now and then with friends close by and some from far off. Some meals are fun and exciting and others leave us wanting to try again. But, through it all, it is at the table.
