When Jesus came by,
he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick,
come down! I must be a guest in your home today.” Zacchaeus quickly climbed
down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy.
Born
and raised in a strong Christian home, Micah spent most of her life actively
involved in her home church until she moved away at the age of 18. Over the next
seven years, she drifted away from church because she just couldn’t find one
that felt like “home.” Shortly after she turned 25, Micah went through some
situations that caused her to realize she desperately needed a radical change
in her life and her hunger for God began to intensify.
She visited some churches near her
home, but she felt isolated and alone when she was there. One Sunday morning,
Micah decided to check out Gateway—a local church that some of her friends had
recommended. Arriving about 25 minutes before the service began, she noticed
that, unlike the churches she had previously visited, the greeters at the door
looked her in the eye and immediately made her feel welcomed and at home. Micah
found an empty seat near the front and patiently waited for the service to
start. Mike and Karen Maddox, along with their three kids, sat down in the
seats next to her, and quickly struck up a conversation with her.
The service began and Micah found
herself drawn in and engaged by the worship and the message. When the
invitation came at the end, Micah slipped out of her seat, made her way down to
the front and waited for someone to pray with her. To her surprise, Karen
Maddox came down to the front as well and asked Micah if she could pray with
her. After they finished praying, Karen turned to Micah and asked, “If you
don’t have any plans after church, why don’t you come over to our house and
have lunch with us?” Micah gladly accepted the offer and went over to the
Maddox’s home that afternoon. Mike and Karen made Micah feel like part of the
family. That day, a relationship began that has continued to impact her life.
Although
she thoroughly enjoyed the service and her time with the Maddox family, Micah
didn’t go back to church until she lost her job nine months later. That
experience completely rocked her world, and Micah realized that only God
could help her now. The next Sunday, she went back to the church where she
first met the Maddoxes. At that service, Micah made the decision to relinquish
control of her life to God and depend solely on Him.
Micah quickly became a member of
Gateway and joined the small group hosted by the Maddoxes. The group prayed for
Micah’s job situation, and soon she got a job as a graphic designer at the
church. After being a recipient of the Maddox’s example of kindness and
hospitality, Micah has since opened her own home to host a group for young
single ladies … all because of one family’s sensitivity to the Holy Spirit’s
leading to extend a dinner invitation to a young woman.
The Bible tells about another person
whose life was transformed because of a dinner invitation. Zacchaeus was the
chief tax collector for the city of Jericho—similar to an IRS employee. He was
notoriously famous for cheating people and had amassed a fortune by overtaxing
the people. As the most corrupt guy in town, he was both a social and religious
pariah, and people hated him.
When news reached Zacchaeus that Jesus
had come to Jericho, his curiosity got the best of him and he decided to go see
what all the fuss was about. Being a fairly short man, he wasn’t able to see
above the crowd gathered around Jesus. But Zacchaeus didn’t get to where he was
by not being resourceful. Looking around, he spotted a sycamore tree with limbs
low to the ground that were ideal for climbing. He quickly scaled the tree, so
he’d have a prime view of Jesus when He was passing by.
As Jesus was walking by, He looked up
and saw Zacchaeus sitting perched up in the tree. Not having a house of His
own, Jesus invited Himself over for dinner at Zacchaeus’ home. The Bible says
Zacchaeus “took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy,” so it’s
obvious that people really enjoyed being around Jesus. He never religiously
judged or condemned people or looked down on them, except for those who were
legalistic, hypocritical and judgmental themselves. In fact, it was the
judgmental people who had an issue with Jesus going to Zacchaeus’ house, but of
course, Jesus didn’t let that stop Him. And as a result, Zacchaeus’ heart was
radically transformed. Here was a man who was as crooked and corrupt as they
come, but because Jesus invited Himself over for dinner, Zacchaeus ended up not
only giving away half of everything he owned to the poor, he also vowed to pay
back four times the amount to anyone he’d cheated.
“Going” isn’t by any means limited to
packing up everything you own and moving overseas to minister to tribes in the
jungle. In fact, one of the most effective ways to minister is simply going out
of your way to invite people over for dinner. Everyone has to eat at some point
in time, right?
How hard is it to walk up to someone
and say: “Hey, come over to my house and have dinner with my family and me this
week” or “Let me buy you coffee this week”? It’s really that easy, and it’s
always worth it!
Each of us is hardwired to pursue God
wholeheartedly and to love one another without reservation. That’s the essence
of the two greatest commandments—love God; love others. God wants us to reach
out to others through our relationships with them. What better place to start
than around the dinner table?
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