CHRISTMAS RECIPE

Sometimes Jan and I have spent evenings with Christian friends that were fun and very enjoyable. Yet we have gone away commenting that there was little or no specifically spiritual conversation during the evening. In fact we might have had a similar evening with a group of “not yet believers” - who don’t love Jesus and don’t read their Bibles. Shouldn't the recipe even for our fun social gatherings often mix in some spiritual content on most occasions?

A few weeks ago, along with our weekly staff meeting that includes prayer, we’ve added to our church staff week a share and pray hour. We begin by each sharing a Scripture verse or verses that we’ve read in the last few days and then commenting on this was special to us. I’ve really enjoyed hearing what Marian, Jinggoy or Jacob have been enjoying in their daily Bible reading. Usually as we then pray, our first couple of prayers will reference some truth that was just shared from Scripture.

Recently Jan and I were invited to dinner at an HIF home. The hostess asked us all to come prepared to share a Scripture with the group. There were ten of us at the meal. During the evening, we talked about many things, some serious and some very funny. But at one point we were asked to share our Scripture. It was delightful to hear a variety of Bible verses along with meaningful comments as to why the passages were chosen.

Another variation on this: if you are with Christians you don’t know well, ask each one to share something of their spiritual journey. Hearing what God has done in the life of others can be very encouraging and causes us to praise God for what He has done and is doing.

Many of us may spend extra time with Christians during the Christmas Season. I hope you laugh a lot and maybe even eat too much. But I encourage you to take the initiative and into the recipe “mix some depth into your gathering.” Christian friendship and fellowship should often go a little deeper, don’t you think?