This week a friend invited me and another couple to her home for lunch. I was excited for several reasons:

1. Normally I have lunch meetings in crowded restaurants; this was going to be a relaxed, homemade lunch in a friend’s home.

2. I had never been to my friend’s home, so this was an honor and a treat.

3. I was going to hang out with some great people.

I recently read an article about our culture moving farther and farther away from the table. No, this wasn’t about how we’re pushing away from the table because we want to eat less (that’s a whole different subject).

This article was about how we are losing the communal experience of sharing meals around the table. And I fear the author is correct.

I’m feeling it as a dad of three daughters. From ballet to cheerleading to church stuff…dinner at the table is becoming difficult, but it’s a battle we’re going to fight!

Because the table is where I ask how my kids’ days were. It’s where we laugh and sometimes, hopefully, food comes out of our noses. It’s where we talk about manners and kindness. And it’s also where we fight and then learn how to apologize.

And this extends from our families to our friends. I love to sit around the table with good food, good friends and occasionally even some good wine.

Why is that we don’t invite people into our homes for meals anymore? Are we afraid of how the house might look? Are we worried that our kids might cry and misbehave? Are we too busy running around? Are we more interested in binge-watching Breaking Bad on Netflix?

I’m so thankful my friend invited me to her table this week. When we finished our meal, we sat down in the living room to drink coffee. That’s when I heard one of the most incredible stories I’ve ever heard – how my friend burned down an outhouse in the middle of a village, in front of all the villagers, in a country very far from here!! And It was the only outhouse in the village.

I’ll never forget that lunch, because I’ll never forget the story of the flaming outhouse – you could say it’s burned into my mind.

So gather your family and some friends this week. Get around the table and share life. Who cares if the house is a wreck and the kids are screaming!

Who is popping into your mind right now? Make the call.