Dinner Amongst the Dysfunctional

When Jesus sat for his last meal, He chose to sit with an odd group of friends. There was His best friend, whom Jesus knew would deny him multiple times in His hour of need...there was his "friend" who would turn him over to his enemies, and then there were the others...who would simply fade away when the most important events in His life were occuring.

Yet, to this odd group of non-performers, Jesus breaks His body and spills His blood. There is no record of the Apostles grasping the meaning from the table...one can almost see them nodding in benign appreciation for teachings that just flew right over their heads.

Imagine the sense of regret that Peter and all of the rest of the disciples felt when they realized how important that last dinner really was. Imagine the chagrin when they realized that the "body and blood" that looked so much like wine and bread during that dinner were, actually, the symbolic Truth from God, Himself. Imagine how stupid each one felt when they realized that the forewarnings of suffering were not just metaphorical...they were a narration that would see full embodiment in the next 24 hours.

Before Warren Zevon, the unusual but gifted songsmith who penned "Werewolves of London," passed a few years ago, he made an appearance on a late night talk show. The host asked Zevon if he had learned any great lessons as someone who knew his passing (from terminal cancer) would come at any moment. Zevon grinned and stated, " I've learned to enjoy every sandwich."

One of the lessons from the Last Supper is that we, like the Apostles, need to learn to "enjoy every sandwich." Because our appreciation of meaning is often imperfect, we need to take a chance and assign meaning to moments we might ordinarily take for granted. The spark of the Divine can often touch us when we least expect it.....we should be ready to celebrate it when it arrives.

The second lesson is that, even when we miss that moment of meaning....and when the lack of recognition pains us and embarrasses us later, we need to understand that meaning has not left us...even if the moment has.

We are Easter people....even when we forget to appreciate all the blessings in our midst, meaning comes to find us in the sacrifice and victory of our Savior.

Enjoy your dinner....and look to the cross....