Friendship, Food, and Faith

God, whose blessed Son made himself known to his disciples in the breaking of the bread:                                               

                                                                                                   From the Collect for Easter III.

When he was at table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road?”                                                                              Luke 24

Christianity is an eating religion. It is all about relationship with the risen and living Lord that most concretely expresses itself in gathering around a table where Jesus is both host of the meal and the meal itself. 

Every meal offers the promise of deepening friendship and kinship. The practical and measurable results of this experience are borne out of a recent survey conducted by the Gallup Organization. 

Their recent research indicates that people with close friendships in their church are very satisfied with their parish, are much less likely to leave the congregation, and have a strong friendship with God. Respondents with a best friend at church were also more likely to say their faith is involved in every aspect of their lives. 

More specifically 77% of those surveyed who are highly satisfied with their parish, have eaten a meal with people in their parish (who are not family members) at some point over the last year. Only 56% of somewhat satisfied or dissatisfied members have shared a meal together. And 62% of those members also report spending more time in prayer and worship compared to 49% of those who have not shared a meal at church. The connection between human friendships, spiritual maturity, church satisfaction, and intimacy with God are absolutely remarkable. 

At Good Shepherd we gather around our Lord’s table every Sunday to celebrate his victory over sin and death, to proclaim God’s steadfast, redeeming love and to strengthen and deepen the ties that bind our hearts in love to Jesus and to each other. Here we also eat a lot outside of church, like our Wednesdays at Good Shepherd. Your participation in all those meals, symbolic and actual, are guaranteed paths to friendship and faith and food! Renew your commitment to regular worship and prayer at Good Shepherd and be one who never misses a meal!