Room at the Table

“Oh, that seat is saved.” I cringe every time I hear those words. My heart hurts as I watch a lonely woman’s face betray her surprise. It stinks when there’s no room at the table.

“Oh, that seat is saved.” I cringe every time I hear those words. My heart hurts as I watch a lonely woman’s face betray her surprise. It stinks when there’s no room at the table.

I’ve been there. As both a seat-saver and seat-seeker, I’ve saved seats for my favorites on numerous occasions. And I remember all too well what it feels like to be turned away.

As women engaged in ministry and serving in our churches, why do we struggle to let others into our circle? Why not expand the table or pull up a chair?

It’s scary. We worked hard to earn our spot on the staff. We taught a long time before anyone noticed. We endured the wounds of those we trusted. And so sometimes it’s just safer to stick with those we know.

There’s just one problem. The message of our gospel is a mantra of multiplication. There’s always room at Jesus’ table—even for the awkward, gaudy, depressed, and frenzied. If Jesus had room, shouldn’t we?  

Recently I stumbled upon one of the great room-makers in scripture. And I want to learn from his life. In a world that’s all about me and mine, we could stand a dose of Barnabas’ contagious faith.

Tucked within the pages of Acts 11, we get a glimpse into Barnabas’ life. “When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them to all remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith” (Acts 11:23–24a). He sounds like someone we’d all want to be around and learn from. So here are 3 things I gleaned from his example:

Faith goes. Barnabas went where he was needed. When the believers at Antioch, fresh in faith, needed a pastor, he gladly accepted the role. He left Jerusalem, lived among these new believers, and led them in the ways of Jesus (Acts 11:22).

Faith gets. Barnabas soon realized that he couldn’t handle the growing church on his own. So he went and got Saul from Tarsus (Acts 11:25–26). This is the second time he made space for the man who’d write over half our New Testament.

The first is found in Acts 9:26–30. It’s no wonder that most of the apostles showed little interest in meeting Saul the Persecutor. Sure, he said he changed his ways. But none of them were quite certain— except Barnabas.

He believed Saul’s story and brought him before the Jerusalem apostles. Barnabas shared about his transformation, set Saul before the church leaders, and stood beside him. He made room for another at the early apostolic table.

Faith gives. With this kind of man leading Antioch’s church, it’s little wonder that these people live generously. When the opportunity to give arose, they gathered up their gift and sent it to the impoverished Jerusalem church. They even asked Barnabas and Saul to deliver it personally.

Barnabas was a room-maker. It seems he always had extra space—space in his schedule to serve, space at his table for new men, space in his wallet when poverty struck. Do I? Do we?

Let’s be women with room to spare. Let’s pull up some chairs and expand our tables. Let’s swallow our pride and let someone else serve. Let’s gather a gift and hand-deliver the goods. Our generous faith might be contagious.