LISTEN ON

OCTOBER 24, 2021

Participating in a shared experience gives us the opportunity to partake together in joy, in belonging, and in community. I spoke at Kaleo Phx on Sunday, October 24, 2021 and this is a recording from that gathering. Below is a transcript of my message notes.

JESUS STORIES

“Miracles at the Table”

I’ve been out of town the last couple of weeks because Kendall and I officially got married!!! Out of all the wonderful things that happened on our wedding day…

The Table was my favorite... (listen to audio recording for details)

What was most interesting to me is the language the anonymous guest used to tell the waiter to tell us. “I was captured by their love.”
- Meaning that they were witnessing something...that moved them to want to participate in what they were witnessing.
- Which then moved them to share what they had with us...so they could also partake in what they were witnessing.
- What’s funny is...there were moments when I was irritated at the table...I was hangry at the table...I was anxious at the table…we were just a bunch of imperfect people sharing a meal together.

John 13:35 - “And they will know that you are my disciples by your love for one another…”

There are two things I want to invite you to pay attention to in this story:

#1. They saw us sharing something together.
#2. They shared of what they had to participate in what they were witnessing.
The common denominator here...is SHARING.

The reason why I share that story is because…

I know many of you are wondering how the wedding went. That takes care of that! ;)
The title of our time together tonight is called...

MIRACLES AT THE TABLE.

JESUS ALSO ATTENDED A WEDDING.

AND THERE WAS ALSO A MIRACLE AT HIS TABLE.

JOHN 2:1-11 (NLT)

The next day there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration. 3 The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus’ mother told him, “They have no more wine.”

4 “Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”

5 But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

6 Standing nearby were six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold twenty to thirty gallons.

7 Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled, 8 he said, “Now dip some out, and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So the servants followed his instructions.

9 When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over. 10 “A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!”

11 This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

To recap, Jesus shows up to a wedding. His mom is also there and eventually she reports to Jesus that the wine supply has run out. Essentially, what is a celebration without the wine?!

At first blush, Jesus voices this truth - that it is not his problem. Nevertheless Jesus chooses to perform his first miracle. He takes some stone water jars, fills them with 20-30 gallons of water, and then has a few helpers take them before the wedding party. When they dip into the jars to fill their glasses (or goblets, or mugs, or however people drank wine in the first century), they find wine. But not just any wine, the best wine! In Jesus’ first miracle he chooses his family and friends over his plans and upgrades the party.

What’s interesting about this story is that:

The number 6 throughout Scripture signifies WORK.
The 6 stone waterpots at that time were used for CEREMONIAL CLEANSING. Which the Jews had to do themselves.
Each stone waterpot was holding 20-30 gallons of water...filled to the brim.

Jesus was basically saying, “Hey, you can work all you want to to purify yourself…But I have come…And my shed blood poured out for all people is worth CELEBRATING. For the water being turned into wine is a picture of My love for you. It’s an invitation to stop striving...and just receive...and just BE.”

It’s not just any wine...it’s the BEST wine.

And Jesus does this on the 3rd Day...

At a wedding feast…

At a table...shared by everyone at the wedding…

which is what many of us will experience later tonight.

Participating in a shared experience gives us the opportunity to partake together in joy, in belonging, and in community.

THE SCIENCE OF SHARING

“In a ‘Sharing Culture’ (the main goal) is to co-produce, manage, and share, resources, time, services, knowledge, information, and support based on solidarity and reciprocity rather than economic profit.”

“The act of sharing releases Oxytocin, the bonding hormone, into the body and increases feelings of well-being. This hormone also provides a stimulus to protect the bond formed against other surrounding bonds.”

Which basically means that you only share with those who are “your people”... your community...and your community is made up of people with whom you share.

So which comes first? Community...or sharing?

Our desire for community derives from the internal DNA we all have to...in some way...in some fashion...share our lives with each other.

"But by simply sharing that meal, or spending the afternoon shopping with friends, we begin to attach deeper meaning to the experience. Confirmed in a UK study by Lambert et al, who found that verbalising happiness increased and sustained the well-being of participants well beyond that of simply having the experience, shared experiences encourage us to become more aware, more mindful of ourselves and our feelings as we recognise and verbalise our emotions, and in turn, the emotions themselves often become more intense when shared, all of which heightens the experience, planting it more firmly in the memory, and restoring the balance between negative and positive experiences that our brain is recording."

Philippians 2 reminds us…

Though Jesus was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.

7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 He humbled himself in obedience to God...

Jesus left the goodness of what He had to make it accessible to those who didn’t have it.

Jesus SHARED.

Jesus was BLESSED...to be a blessing.

The Children of Israel in the old testament were CHOSEN to be blessed to be a blessing...but sometimes they forgot to be a blessing. Sometimes they became so focused on themselves...so focused on their own comfort, wealth, blessing...that they forgot to SHARE it with those who didn’t have anything.

I’ll be honest with you...that’s me too sometimes. I’m challenged to share the blessings that I have.

Even when I’m at a comedy show with my husband, Kendall, and I order a delicious, moist chocolate cake that goes down like butter...and he voluntarily gives half of it away to our friends who are with us...my immediate response was (true story)…

WHY DID YOU DO THAT?!

I LOVE CHOCOLATE CAKE…

THAT WAS MY CHOCOLATE CAKE.

And he looked at me with eyes that said…”oh, so this is definitely going to come up again in the life of our relationship. Yep...alrighty then.”

And as small and as minuscule and as funny as that might seem...the pattern of behavior tells me something about myself...that I must learn to SHARE.

It tells me that deep down inside I believe that there’s not enough...

That if I share it...I won’t be able to get another.

That if I share it…I’ll lose it.

Trust me, there are definitely boundaries in sharing and I’m not saying you should share everything you have all the time because depending on the situation, that can ALSO be harmful.

But my point is that we have all been blessed with something...and that blessing is not just for us...but for others.

But sharing requires a belief that we can trust that we are loved and cared for.

AS THE BAND COMES UP, CONTEMPLATE THIS QUESTION:

What do those at The Table experience when we join them?

(Moment of silence)

Safety?
Harm?
Surety?
Uncertainty?
Healing?
Sickness?
Toxicity?
Judgment?
Love?
Comfort?
Kindness?
Encouragement?
Provision?

To come to the table with toxicity and leave sheltered / cared for... is a miracle.

To come to the table with sadness and leave with joy...is a miracle.

To come to the table in isolation and leave with community...is a miracle.

To come to the table with shame and leave with love...is a miracle.

To come to the table with judgment and leave with affirmation...is a miracle.

To come to the table with hurt and leave with some glimmer of hope that you can trust again...is a miracle.

To come to the table with wounds and leave with words that comfort like a soothing ointment...is a miracle.

To come to the table with questions and leave with answers...is a miracle.

To come to the table with questions and leave affirmed that it’s okay NOT to have the answers...is ALSO a miracle.

Inside of each and every one of us is a miracle that someone else needs.

And inside of someone else is the miracle that we need just as well.

We, like Jesus, can witness miracles at The Table...if we can only learn to SHARE.

A PRAYER FOR SHARING OUR STORIES

by Tiffany C. Chaney

Gracious and loving God, as unique as we all are, so are our stories. Each story is intricately woven with the fine details of life, seasoned with memories – some pleasant, others not so pleasant. In every detail, every memory, every element of our story, you are present. As we share our faith, we witness to your ever-present, ever-faithful, ever-loving accompaniment on our journey. Help us, Lord, to share our faith stories in ways and with people who might come to know you all the more as a result of our witnessing. Show us those with whom you would like us to connect. Thank you for those you have sent to share their stories with us. Together, all our stories are a part of your story, for which we are grateful. Amen.

This prayer is an excerpt from “Faith reflections: Sharing our faith stories” is Café e-magazine.

BENEDICTION

Until we see you again… may the Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God, and the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. We’ll see you at the table!