Choose the Longer Table

Romans 15:7 — Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.

The table is already full when I walk into the kitchen.

Extra food is laid out. Extra plates are stacked nearby. Chairs lean against the wall, ready if needed. And before I even sit down, a quiet gratitude rises in me.

Thank You, God.

But it hasn’t always felt this way.

If I’m honest, there have been seasons when abundance made me anxious instead of grateful. Times when I had more than enough and still felt the urge to guard it. To think, I worked hard for this. What if I need it later?

You might recognize that feeling.

Sometimes the struggle isn’t generosity—it’s control.

Some days I’m openhanded. Other days I’m cautious. The tension is familiar: Do I hold on, or do I let it flow?

And then, almost without warning, I remember something important.

I remember how I was welcomed.

I didn’t earn my seat at God’s table. I didn’t bring enough to justify being there. Grace wasn’t measured out carefully or guarded with conditions.

I was invited simply because that’s who God is.

There were no fences. No fine print. Just a place set for me.

And remembering that changes everything.

Generosity stops feeling like loss and starts looking like imitation—taking the same posture as Jesus. After all, Scripture says, “Welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you.”

That’s the pattern.

I’ve been welcomed, so I welcome.

That doesn’t mean my instincts magically change. Some days I still want to build a fence. To protect what feels scarce. But grace keeps interrupting that impulse, reminding me how freely I was received.

So today, I choose the longer table.

I pull up another chair. I share what I’ve been given.

And that’s the invitation for all of us—to open our lives a little wider and live like the table was always meant to have room for more.

 

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A MOMENT TO REFLECT

• When have you experienced someone welcoming you in a way that made you feel truly valued?
• Why do you think it can be difficult to share what we have, even when we have enough?
• How does remembering Christ’s welcome toward you change the way you treat others?
• What might a “longer table” look like in your life this week?
• Who could you intentionally welcome today?