For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thristy and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in (Mt. 25: 3

Have you ever wondered how often meals figure in the life of Jesus? Jesus ate with sinners and outcasts –Levi, (Mark 2:15-17), the Pharisees (Luke 14) and Zacchaeus. (Luke 19:2-9) Think of the wonderful miracles that came out of those meal times. He himself was ministered to when he ate with his friends, Lazarus, Martha and Mary. The Last Supper was clearly instituted in the context of a meal. The resurrected Christ brought Peter back into fellowship in the midst of a meal fellowship.

And today, I can’t help but think of the many testimonies of people who came to know Christ through Christian meal hospitality. I remember testimonies from the pulpit of students who began by going to church because of the free meals and who were converted later. Some of them are church leaders today. I think of a former political refugee of the Tiananmen massacre (his name slips my mind at this time of writing) who attended bible studies in the States just for the meals but who eventually was convicted by the word of God. Today, he has a world wide ministry to the Chinese speaking community.

A Vietnamese pastor Paul Ai, spoke of his people who are foreign workers working in places where pork was forbidden. Like the Chinese, pork is an essential part of the Vietnamese diet. What did they do? They went to church because there was free food with pork thrown in. I was told recently that seventeen Vietnamese were baptized in this area. I am very sure, for them, their salvation began with pork which reminded them of home, love and family.

In the parable of the sheep and goats (Mt. 25 : 35-40) Jesus said that when we give food and drink to the hungry, we are giving it to him. Never underestimate the power of food to the spirit. Blessed are the hands that prepared the food!