Enjoying Life Together
Summer offers many of us a change of pace and routine. Families adjust their activities around breaks from school and enjoy vacations together. Kids attend camps. Many church members participate in mission trips. Long days afford us more time outside in the evenings to catch up with neighbors. Our work continues, but our schedules shift with the season.
You know what all this means? A great opportunity to share meals together! We’ve talked a lot at UBC about using the dinner table as a gathering place, following the example in Acts 2. In the Old Testament, Ecclesiastes also encourages us to enjoy our food… and our work. I believe our work is much more than our employment; it’s the purposeful work that God has called us to do – loving Him and loving others.
- The best that people can do is eat, drink, and enjoy their work. I saw that even this comes from God, because no one can eat or enjoy life without Him. (Ecc. 2:24-25 NCV)
- God wants all people to eat and drink and be happy in their work, which are gifts from God. (Ecc 3:13 NCV)
- I have seen what is best for people here on earth. They should eat and drink and enjoy their work… (Ecc. 5:18 NCV)
- The best that people can do here on earth is to eat, drink, and enjoy life, because these joys will help them do the hard work God gives them here on earth. (Ecc 8:15 NCV)
- So go eat your food and enjoy it; drink your wine and be happy, because that is what God wants you to do. (Ecc. 9:7 NCV)
God gives us many good things to enjoy… including our food, our work, and each other. Let’s find more ways to enjoy all those things together this summer.