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Neighboring 101: Tithe Your Meals

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Written By Tim Brister

Tim has a missionary heart for his hometown to love those close to him yet far from God. He is husband to Dusti and father to Nolan, Aiden, and Adelyn - fellow pilgrims to our celestial city.

The average person will eat three meals a day. Most people do not think strategically about how they spend their meals, but meals play a strategic and vital role to missional engagement on the block. A practical way to invest in your neighborhood is to “tithe” your meals for mission.

Can you take two meals a week and use them intentionally to build a relationship with someone or a family? Perhaps you can set aside a specific night each week as a rhythm for a “hospitality meal” where neighbors are invited ahead of time. Take the other meal to develop a relationship one-on-one or two-on-two. The meals do not have to be fancy or impressive. The point is to spend time together over a meal getting to know one another. People will not be impressed so much by how well you cook as how well you listen and love.

Over time, meals create opportunities for barriers to come down and interest to build up. Shared interested and bridges into each others’ lives are forged as we learn our stories. Tithing meals for mission does take as much work as it does intentionality and prioritizing your life such that it does not get crowded out by other urgent or important matters. Life happens, but mission does not happen. Meals, however, a great place to start.