Can I still get a plate tho?

One of my favorite, recent Thanksgiving stories happened because of a fat-fingered text message. Wanda Dench sent a text to what she thought was her grandson's phone saying, "Thanksgiving dinner is at my house on November 24th at 3PM,"

An unknown number replied, asking who the message was from. Wanda replied, "Your grandma."

They exchanged pictures.

Jamal Hinton, then 17, responded "You not my grandma. Can I still get a plate tho?"

Dench texted, "Of course you can. That's what grandmas do ... feed everyone."

This happened in 2016. And from what I've gathered, they've become friends and celebrate Thanksgiving together every year.

I love that story because it echoes the heart of the gospel. God invites people to his table and offers grace. That grace isn't ours to keep; it's ours to share. We are adopted into God's family; now we invite others to join us at the royal table.

J.I. Packer, in his book Knowing God reminds us that our understanding of Christianity cannot be better than our grasp of adoption.

If you want to judge how well a person understands Christianity, find out how much he makes of the thought of being God’s child, and having God as his Father.

If this is not the thought that prompts and controls his worship and prayers and his whole outlook on life, it means that he does not understand Christianity very well at all.

God is our Father and we are his children. He looks over us with the same love that we have for our own kids. He cares as deeply about our tears as we care about the tears of a toddler. He invests as much responsibility in us as we do our grown children when they take over the family business.

We sit at the table of grace. Intentionally invited by our Heavenly Father.

There are people who don't know him yet. They might be looking at God saying, "I don't yet have faith … can I still get a plate tho?"

The answer is always yes. Come. Meet Jesus. Feast on the bread of life.

"Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God." - John 1:12–13

I love this story because it shows that God is always willing to welcome us into his family. No matter what we have done, or who we are, we are always welcome at his table.

This story is also a reminder that we are called to show the same love and grace to others that God has shown to us. We are called to invite others to the table, to share our faith with them, and to love them unconditionally.

I hope this story has encouraged you to share God's love with others this Thanksgiving.

With You;
Pastor Tim