When we were building our house, I had a very direct word from the Lord. I was over the building process and ready to throw in the towel. In that very moment, I heard the Lord say, "Rachel, trust me. What I'm going to do in your living room alone will be worth the wait." We've had Bible studies, hard conversations, dance parties, celebrations, family gatherings, and so much more. I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt that everything that has happened in my living room, particularly on this night, was absolutely worth the wait.
In the spring time, I truly believe that this isn't just one of my favorite traditions, but it is no doubt one of the most important things we will ever do. We host a dinner with our friends and their families every year during Holy Week. Holy Week starts at Palm Sunday, when Jesus makes His way into Jerusalem, and goes through the celebration of Easter Sunday. We started hosting this dinner as soon as we moved in and knew we wanted to make it a priority every year after.
We like to plan this dinner weeks in advance, because we not only want to make sure we carve out time for it, but we want to make sure we allow our friends to do the same. In the church world, it's known that Easter is one of the highest attended Sundays of the year. It's a day where we see lots of new families, there's so much going on behind the scenes to prepare, and a huge celebration. This night is one of my favorites because it forces us to stop and remember what's most important. Even though we plan this far out, if you're reading this and Easter isn't weeks away, don't worry. You're not too late. Invite your friends, everyone bring a dish, and I promise you won't regret it.
We start this night by having dinner together. Every dish we have is inspired by Jewish culture and is absolutely delicious. We usually have a variety of kebabs, homemade hummus, a mixture of roasted vegetables, Charoset, and even a potato kugel. Don't be afraid to try new recipes--we haven't found anything that we don't like!
After dinner, we all take Communion together. During this season of life, everyone has young kids, and a lot of times it's hard to slow down and truly remember what this week is all about--celebrating a risen Savior! However, when we sit down at the table together, we're able to block everything else out and focus on Jesus--how He was broken, beaten, and bled for us. My husband leads us during this time and I am overwhelmed by the Lord's goodness every single time. Taking Communion with friends that are like family is so special.
After dinner and communion, we all gather around in the living room where we tell the kids the story of Jesus washing His disciples' feet during the Last Supper. After that, all of the dads begin to wash their children's feet. They're modeling what it means to serve and lead by example. The way our kids look at their dads while they do this is a gift that I never want to take for granted. What a beautiful picture of how Jesus loves us!
When my kids grow up, I hope they look back on this night and have the sweetest memories of it. Having dinner with their closest friends, sharing communion together, and having their dads wash their feet...it doesn't get better in my opinion. My hope and prayer is that after nights like this they too can say, "what happened in our living room was well worth the wait."
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