I’m having some people over for dinner on Monday night. Actually, it’s the beginnings of my new home group in my new home. All very exciting. Anyway, everyone who’s invited has asked me: “What can I bring?” My answer is a very emphatic “NOTHING!!”. It’s interesting how uncomfortable people are with that response. “But we HAVE to bring something!”. No, you don’t. Just come, accept the invitation, eat, hang out and enjoy. Don’t try to pay me back immediately. We don’t have to end the evening having contributed equal amounts of food.
I hate the idea of potlucks. Unfortunately, the church seems obsessed with them, which is possibly why I feel so strongly. To me, a potluck is like saying, “Come for dinner! Oh, and by the way, can you bring the dinner?”. What kind of invitation is that? Did God invite us into the kingdom and ask us to bring our own sacrifice? No chance! Now, I’m not going to hang myself by stretching that analogy too farJ I know there are times when potluck is the only way something is going to work, and better to get together than to cancel the event. But the whole potluck idea has gone way too far where people cannot bear to show up empty handed, even to the smallest of gatherings. It’s just too humbling. But receiving someone’s gifts is humbling. We shouldn't try to neutralize their gift by bringing one of our own.
So, next time someone invites you for dinner and asks you to bring something…just say “no!” I’m kidding. I guess it’s polite to check with the host. In some cultures it’s deeply offensive to show up empty-handed. But, if they let you off the hook, be humbly content and enjoy their gift.
Philomena
I completely agree. It is a delight to give a fellow mom a night off from cooking - no salad, no bread, no dessert. And I in turn love the night off, too. Entertaining is a gift to others. Well done!
Beth
Posted by: Beth | October 10, 2006 at 06:41 PM