Gratitude for God's Table

​On Epiphany 2021, as I watched the images of mobs storming the United States Capital building, I felt compelled to write a thank-you letter to all of my loved ones in Potluck Church. So, I grabbed my laptop and opened up our Facebook group page and hurriedly hacked out: 
 
“This may seem like an odd thing to say on a day like this, but I feel compelled to say how SO very thankful I am for each of you personally and for the whole of us as a church--that we, despite all of our many (many!) differences, have gathered around the Lord's Table to practice civil, respectful conversation and learned to love each other just as we are and honor the light of Christ in one another even in our imperfections. God is bigger than all of our perspectives and opinions and sins. And God's call upon us is far greater than any one of us can imagine or see or discern. We need each other. Thank you for being one of the few places in my life where I can freely share my opinions and know that they will be gently heard with love and challenged with an equal amount of love. The world needs more of this thing that God has created among us. I love you all!”  
 
Because of Potluck Church I can testify that the Lord’s Table is not just a place for presiding over and serving communion. The Potluckers have shown me that the Lord’s Table can be a place for sitting down and sharing our hearts and minds with one another in a respectful and sacred space. And each time when I leave that Table, I feel heard, and known, and challenged, and loved. 
 
Around the table we share our doubts, worries and fears. We question almost everything, and learn from one another’s lives. And we confess that none of us has all of the answers. We need each other to get even a glimpse of just how big the God we worship and serve really is. God has many ways of healing this world, and I know that one of the most powerful ways is in the breaking of bread around a table with lots of chairs.
 
What if all of our churches held communion as a full meal…at a table suitable for dining…with enough chairs for everyone…and a space held between them that is so respectful that even their conversation can be called “sacred” and “worship”?  What healing might God unleash upon us all?