#FamilyFriday | The Posture of Prayer
If you grew up in a Christian home, like I did, you can almost definitely be sure that there will be a prayer before every meal. We did it three times a day, every day! I honestly cannot remember a day that we did not pray before we ate. But in recent years, as we studied what God asks of us, we found this command: To thank the Lord AFTER we eat. Wait, what?
“You shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land he has given you.”
Now, wait. Before you go yell at Granny for making you pray before every meal, there is indeed a passage in the New Testament that shows Jesus blessed the Lord before He broke bread with the multitude. But that's the exception, not the rule. So as we tried to live out God's word in our day to day lives, we tried so hard to pray after eating rather than before. It seems so simple, but it's been one of the hardest things for us to change. Maybe it's true - it's when we are full and satisfied and dwelling in safety that we most easily forget to be grateful for what God has given us.
Ok, that was a rabbit trail. We still pray before our meals, and we do our best to remember to bless the Lord when we are full and satisfied, as well. We haven't made Hadassah pray with us, but we do it in front of her every time we eat together. Wednesday, we sat down to eat and Jonathan and I held hands to pray. Once he was done, she asked to hold each of our hands then bowed her head. She wanted to pray with us! And she's done that at every meal since then!
I know she isn't actually praying. She's just going through the motions of what she has seen us do, but I know it's the start of something. C.S. Lewis wrote that we are animals, and whatever our bodies do effects our souls. Her body is finding the posture of prayer, and eventually, I know that her heart will follow her actions. I can't tell you how excited that makes me!
I hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving yesterday, surrounded by all your family and overflowing with prayer and gratitude! As we enter the holiness of Shabbat tonight, may that same spirit of gratitude continue to grow in us and spread to those around us. Shabbat shalom!