Stronger Together
Table Talk
Setting the Table
You are welcome here. Come just as you are, bringing whatever is on your heart today. Take a few moments and allow yourself to just be. Take a couple deep breaths, grab yourself a cup of coffee, light a candle, do something that brings you comfort. Allow yourself to be present in this moment.
Consider how when we all work together, we can achieve far more than we set out to accomplish alone.
You're not alone;
together we stand;
I'll be by your side, you know I'll take your hand.
- Avril Lavigne
1 Corinthians 12:21-27
The eye cannot say to the hand, “I do not need you,” nor in turn can the head say to the foot, “I do not need you.” On the contrary, those members that seem to be weaker are essential, and those members we consider less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our unpresentable members are clothed with dignity, but our presentable members do not need this. Instead, God has blended together the body, giving greater honor to the lesser member, so that there may be no division in the body, but the members may have mutual concern for one another. If one member suffers, everyone suffers with it. If a member is honored, all rejoice with it. Now you are Christ’s body, and each of you is a member of it.
Food for Thought
This past week, we got to celebrate my daughter’s 6th birthday at a magical place called Dollywood!
We had the best time riding roller coasters, eating the park’s famous cinnamon bread for breakfast, and seeing all the lit pumpkins they had carved for their fall festival. But honestly, my favorite part of the park was the backdrop of the Smoky Mountains and how the trees seemed to paint those mountains in red, yellow, and orange.
Dollywood sits right in the middle of Pigeon Forge, just a short five miles from Gatlinburg – it’s simply gorgeous, and something about it just feels like a country song.
I had forgotten how much I missed the mountains in the fall and how fond I am of this part of the country. Even though I spent a lot of time in the Smokies in college, my last visit was Labor Day weekend of 2016 when my husband and I went up to celebrate our anniversary.
We spent most of that visit walking the streets of Gatlinburg, and as I walked those same streets last week, it dawned on me that the last time we were there was just two months before Gatlinburg experienced one of the most devastating forest fires they had seen in one hundred years. The fire spread quickly, and the community had little time to react. It engulfed the mountainsides, taking loved ones, bringing homes and businesses to the ground, and leaving memories in ashes.
I remember reading an article that came out the following summer that highlighted stories of survivors, their tragic losses, and how they had been able to navigate life after. It also recounted stories of kindness and heroism.
It shared a story of a man who risked his own life to clear fallen trees so that other families could escape to safety. There were perfect strangers who came to leave anonymous tokens of hope and love around the city. As people called in from all over the country, a national telethon raised enough money to give a monthly stipend to those who had lost their homes. Christmas cards flooded in the month after the tragedy to brighten the spirits of the town.
These are just a few of the many stories that remind us all of our shared humanity.
There are times in life when we are reminded that it doesn’t matter where you are from or who you vote for; it doesn’t matter what team you pull for or where you worship. These kinds of life-changing events tear down the walls and break down every barrier – they lift the veil that hides us behind our differences long enough for us to really see each other. And it’s in those moments that we realize we are far more alike than we are different. We are a part of the same team. We are in this together.
As 1 Corinthians reminds us, we are all parts of one body – one community. We can’t say to one another “I don’t need you.” God has blended us together so that we might have mutual concern for one another. When one part of the body suffers, we all suffer, and when one part is honored, every part shares in its joy!
And isn’t that it?! Even in the midst of tragedy, even in moments of shared loss, we catch a glimpse of the extraordinary – when people reach out to one another because they see past all the conditional things that keep us apart, and focus instead on the shared humanity that connects us to each other.
We each have the potential for the extraordinary.
Being in Gatlinburg this past week – seeing its resilience and the bustling of life all around – I was reminded of what is possible when we decide to turn toward one another instead of away. I was reminded of the selfless sacrifice that went into bringing this community back to life and the beauty that bursts forth from it. And standing there in the midst of it all, I was reminded of the simple truth that, above everything that threatens to tear us apart, we are much stronger together.
Many people around us are experiencing loss or tragedy. For some it’s communal and others individual. Seek out ways to spark the extraordinary around you. Bring a meal to a grieving family, or leave an anonymous note of encouragement for a neighbor.
If you are interested in reading the stories of the Gatlinburg survivors, you can find that article here, Fire on the Mountain.
The goal of this series is to take small steps toward inviting others into deeper community with you. One way might be inviting others to join in for a little Table Talk. Here is a printable version of today's Table Talk, Stronger Together, that we hope you will use in whatever way is helpful in your journey!
Blessing
God of love,
You have given us community so that we might have mutual concern for one another. Help us to look beyond the conditional things that keep us apart and seek the shared humanity that brings us together. Help us to reap the harvest of a beautiful community, and bring about the extraordinary within our world.
A little Table Talk for your table...
How have you seen your community come together in the midst of loss and tragedy? What do you think allowed that connection?
Have you experienced an extraordinary act of support and kindness from your community or from a stranger? Take turns sharing your experience.
Make a list of creative ways that you can add to the extraordinary around you (volunteering for a rescue ministry, cooking for a family, etc.).
Try taking it to the Kids Table...
Talk with your kiddos about what extraordinary means (maybe break it down to help them remember – it is extra-ordinary – going the extra mile for others).
Take turns sharing ideas of small ways you can go the extra mile for your neighbors. Write those ideas down, and post the list somewhere that can be easily seen each day for inspiration.
During clean up time, talk with your kiddos about cleaning by themselves vs. with others to help. Explain how working together allows you to get the job done more quickly while also potentially building friendships.
Meet Our Welcoming Voice!
Kendall Grubb is one of the four founders of The Welcome Table! She, along with her husband and daughter, are a military family who call Nashville, TN home. Earning degrees in music and business from Belmont University, she jumps at any opportunity she gets to create something new and help bring it to life. From writing and performing music to leading TWT, she loves the power that song and story have to connect people from all walks of life!
To hear more from Kendall throughout the week, follow along on our Instagram!
Here are Five Things to Remember When Setting Your Own Welcome Table!