This Week's Feast

Our kitchen has been torn apart this week. We are having some remodeling done. I was not sure when it would be functional again. We hope by tomorrow we can put the furniture together in time to feast on Saturday. I am so ready to really cook again. Anyway, because of this I am not sure what we will have for our feast. I am thinking about an Italian roast that I found in Gourmet magazine. I believe I can put it in the crock pot. If it turns out decent I will share the recipe. I will do the Olive Garden salad that I shared a few weeks ago, some garlic bread and something great for dessert.What are you planning?

Why so Special?

I have had many conversations with people about Sabbath feasting and very often I am asked, "why is it important that it be so special?" They know things like fine china and gourmet meals do not secure a place for you in heaven. So, why is it necessary to feast with these things? For me, I think this ties in with your view of worship. There is the view that worship is all about how it makes you feel. It tends to be very emotional and what I would call fluff. Then there is the view that it really has nothing to do with your feeling or emotions, but rather a time of covenant renewal with God. It is all about what He desires, really nothing about our desires. When you view it this way i believe you have a higher vision of what it should be. There is an extreme to this view as well. It can become very rote. We do not want that to happen. Just like with most things in life there is a balance. In our home we hold the same view of Sabbath feasting. It is about Christ. Setting His day aside and celebrating with what He has given us. It does not mean there always has to be fine china or gourmet meals. I do not own any fine china and we have been known to celebrate with pizza. But, this meal has been set apart in our home as different.Because we believe this day centers around Christ, we do believe it should be special. I have said this before, I do not think there is room for legalism here. I would rather celebrate with pizza occasionally than not celebrate at all. But, for the most part it the most special meal of the week and one that we look forward to. On a consistent basis we celebrate and encourage our children to know why we celebrate. Just like we are sometimes sick and cannot go to worship, there are times when feasting cannot happen. But, for us it is not the norm. We feel as though something is missing when we do not have a Sabbath feast. I do realize it may be easier for me. We live in a community that encourages Sabbath feasting. Therefore it is very rare that something is planned on a Saturday night, besides feasting in each others homes. I do not mean to say you should never do things on Saturday night. But, I would encourage you to make it a priority to set the time aside to celebrate. I have friends that do it after church on Sunday because Saturday has not worked for them. Whatever works for your family. Just do not be too quick to give up.

This Week's Feast

The end of our week has been very busy with adoption day festivities. Our plan for Saturday night was to celebrate with friends after a game of bowling. We had a lot of fun and feasted on pizza with them. With all of the celebrating the past few days, we were going to stop there, but I then realized we still had steaks that needed to be cooked. You see, part of Isaac's meal was an appetizer of wings from his favorite place. He ate so many that he did not want his steak meal. So, for lunch today we are feasting on steak, roasted potatoes and greens. It has been a joy to me to see how much feasting has become a part of our family. When we first started it was awkward and I definitely could not have pulled of three or four days of celebrating. It has become very natural now. That said, it will be a long time before we party this much at one time again.