Day 570 - January 6 - A Table Prepared

This morning I was meditating, if you can imagine that, on Psalm 23. Not that you'd have trouble imagining the "Psalm 23" part; but I don't usually come across as "meditative", if you get my drift. But that's the best description of what I was doing - pondering the words of the Psalm to grasp a bit of their intended meaning.

I'm sure most, if not all, of you could recite this most famous Psalm by heart, but it often surprises me the new meaning to be found in it each time I think on it. But sometimes the intent of a word or phrase slips by us in our familiarity. You know what I mean - "TheLordismyShepherdIshallnotwant" goes by so fast that we don't stop and ponder what it means that the Lord is my shepherd. Or that He's my Shepherd. We go by these thing so fast it's like when we were kids on a summer evening. Dinner was always at 5:30 when Dad got home from work, and in El Paso where I grew up, that meant another 4-5 hours of daylight after we ate. So we would bolt our food as quickly as we could get away with, all so we could get down to play - we were so focused on getting past dinner and the clean-up so we could get back out with our friends. And I think that we mostly missed, and didn't appreciate, the time, effort, and skill it took to prepare that table for the family every evening. I know that I rarely acknowledged the work my Mom put into it.

So we scramble past the meaning of these words like a child, eager to go play, misses the opportunity to savor the meal his mother has prepared, and the company of a family that loves him, and the camaraderie of close blood - just because "Hide and Seek" seems more attractive than dinner with his little brother.

Today, I caught the first part of verse 5 - "You prepare a table for me in the presence of my enemies". And I stopped. Why a table? Why in the midst of enemies? Well, the "enemies" bit is pretty self-explanatory - we exist surrounded by peril and disaster and predators, wrapped up in pain and heartache and sorrow. There are some who face more persistent foes, being persecuted for their faith, being hated because of their race - but all face these common enemies. So why prepare a table? Well, I found it interesting that it doesn't say "God feeds me" or "God provides for me" in the presence of my enemies - it says "You prepare a table". Now what do those words draw from your memory? An image of someone lovingly laying down silverware, and china, and goblets in preparation for a feast. Like Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, which you "prepare" for, not like Wednesday dinner, where you "set the table". Those words "prepare a table" imply something greater than just sustenance, something more than just eating food. Those words imply a festival or feast, something that MORE than satisfies. Something that is joyous, and overwhelmingly filling, and satisfying to such a degree that the only thing you can do afterward is loosen your belt and fall asleep in contentment.

That's how God prepares a table for you, in the middle of everything you face today. Not "despite" your trials, and troubles, and pain - "In the presence" of them.

And doesn't that also imply that He is confident that those enemies can't interrupt this feast He's prepared? So that, when you and I sit down at that table, a true grasp of this would allow us to not always be glancing over our shoulders to see if our enemies are sneaking up on us - because the Shepherd has prepared the table and expects us to trust Him about its location.

So, can you sit at that table today? I know I will have difficulty doing it, but He prepared if for me and for you. A place of sustenance, joy, celebration, and companionship, all in the very midst of all the enemies life has thrown your way. Can you sit down and partake?

Join me. And when I start to focus on the things that surround the table, do me a favor - call my attention back to Him who sits at its head.

E.

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