The table is more than just a place to eat. It’s where abundance is shared, where conversations spark, where friendships are formed and strengthened.
Around the table, we experience hospitality, both given and received, and often feel the ache of longing when those connections are missing. Living cross-culturally brings unique joys and challenges to the table: navigating unfamiliar foods, opening our homes in new ways, and learning what fellowship looks like when cultures and expectations meet.
When you think of abundance, what picture of the table comes to mind? How do you experience God’s abundance there?
How do you hold the tension between the longing for deep community and the reality of loneliness?
What practices have helped you create a sense of belonging around your table (even if it looks different from what you grew up with)?
One Response
Since I have been abroad, most of my holiday dinners (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter) are shared with mostly people from my adopted culture and/or foreigners. I really enjoy and now prefer celebrating these dinners with other cultures. Most of the foreigners (a lot of students) that I meet have never been invited into someone’s home from the host culture and to provide them a meal, to share this experience together is always so meaningful. I’m very grateful for these experiences that I might not have discovered in my home culture.