Perhaps you could call it “East Texas Hospitality.” Or, it may be better described as a case of mistaken identity. Either way, it was funny.
I’ve been preaching a series of revival services in Cushing, TX while staying at a hotel in Nacogdoches, TX. This morning, I visited a small café next door to the hotel for breakfast.
I chose a table away from others who were dining so that I could read without distraction. It was a large table that would seat 8-10 people, but I didn’t think the restaurant would mind me sitting there. There were plenty of seats for other customers. After finishing my scrambled eggs, I continued reading and sipping on hot coffee.
Suddenly, the door of the restaurant opened and a group of men began to enter. They started walking toward the area in which I was seated, so I gave them the obligatory smile and head-nod.
The next thing I knew, all of the men were taking a seat at my table! One of the men even started talking to me as though we were old friends. I wasn’t sure what to make of it…. So, I just played along!
After about ten minutes, one of the men said, “Well, I guess you aren’t a part of our group are you?”
It turned out the men were all members of a large Sunday School class at a local church which has an open invitation to meet for breakfast every Tuesday morning. When I looked up and smiled at the men entering the restaurant, they assumed I had been a visitor in the class and was there for the breakfast! It made sense, they explained, because I was sitting at the table where they always gathered.
We all had a great laugh over it. Even more, we enjoyed wonderful fellowship and discussion about the work God is doing in their local church.
It reminded me of another large gathering around a meal described in Revelation 19:9: “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”
This is the celebration of the final, complete, eternal reunification of God’s people with their Savior, Christ Jesus, the Lamb of God.
If I don’t see my new friends anywhere else in this life, I will see them at that great event in the life to come –and none of us will sit at that table by mistake!