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Last Friday evening, Matt and I had dinner at a church member’s home. The food was delightful, and the company was even better. Before we began eating our thoughtfully prepared meal, our host opened with a blessing from Kate Bowler’s The Lives We Actually Have. She read the following:

“A Blessing for Around The Table”

God, awaken us to the everyday miracle of a simple meal.
Whether it is take-out that took a phone call,
a recipe that took an entire afternoon,
or the cereal-for-dinner again feeling this meal creates,
bless it all.

So blessed are we, sharing a meal today.
May we recognize God’s goodness
in the thoughtful preparation,
in the delivering,
in the eating together,
savoring something that tastes like love.

May our time around the table be a gift.

May we be present to one another
engaging all our senses
as an act of thankful worship
to the nourishment that’s before us
with the people we love. Or are trying to.

God, bless the hands that prepared this,
those with us now,
and the ones we wish were.
Bless us, oh God.
in all of our eating and cooking and gathering and sharing,
our jokes, talking-with-our-mouths full,
and elbows on the table,
may we taste and see the love that multiplies.

I was so touched by this blessing, it even made me cry. It turns out the whole evening tasted like love, and I left with a full stomach and a full heart. It’s a gift any time we’re fortunate enough to share a table with friends, family or loved ones. This blessing made especially mindful of the privilege.

If you don’t have Kate’s book which we are using during Lent, I encourage you to order a copy. It’s useful in almost every situation and helps you see the blessings that surround you.

With gratitude,
Rev. Victoria

Order Kate Bowler’s Book The Lives We Actually Have, 100 Blessings  for Imperfect Days at The Lives We Actually Have