While the current pandemic has been devastating in so many ways, there have been blessings hidden amidst this challenging season. Many parents are working from home, spending less time commuting and more time with their loved ones. Children are spending countless hours riding bikes and drawing with sidewalk chalk in the fresh air. Busy household agendas once bursting with scheduled obligations are now more open with space for leisurely strolls after dinner and longer bedtime stories.
For many households, meals have been changed dramatically due to Covid-19. Instead of swinging through a fast-food drive-thru on the way to scheduled activities or appointments, families are enjoying cooking together and gathering around their own dinner table. According to a recent survey, over 54% of households are cooking more during this pandemic. These home-cooked meals shared around the family dinner table provide an opportunity for families to connect in new ways, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually.
Mealtime is a common time for families to pray together or “say grace” before they dig in. Whether you have prayed together hundreds of times or are exploring what it means to integrate faith into your family’s daily life, this blog series is for you. This summer we will feature various Saint Luke families and how they say grace together. We will also have the chance to get to know them better and hear about some of their household mealtime traditions.
Kicking off our series is the Wahler family!
MEET THE WAHLERS
Tell us about your household/family: Our household consists of parents Chris and Jaclyn, children Brendan (13), Liana (11) and Greta (7), and our dog Libby (3).
How long have you been a part of Saint Luke?: We have been members at Saint Luke since 2013, and our youngest child Greta was baptized that year also. We attended worship here for a year or so prior to becoming members.
How did you find Saint Luke? We decided to start worshipping at Saint Luke Lutheran Church when we realized it was nice and close to our house. Our previous church was just not convenient anymore (about a 25-minute drive) and so we were looking for a Lutheran church closer to home. Saint Luke was it!
What is your favorite thing about Saint Luke? A survey of our family revealed our favorite things about Saint Luke include Sunday School, donuts before the service, and the kind, inviting pastors.
Favorite way to spend time as a family during the pandemic: Our favorite ways to spend time during the pandemic have been going on neighborhood walks with the dog, swimming in our pool, and playing games together.
Favorite memory as a family during this season: Our favorite memory as a household this year has been the 2 ½ months that all five of us were home together without anyone going to work or school- although it is not something we wished for, it will likely never happen again and it was nice to spend the time together.
What is something you have been learning during this season?: Without much contact with friends, the children have learned to get along with each other much better than they did previously.
Any family mealtime traditions: We try to eat together at the dinner table as a family as much as possible. We never have TV or phones/tablets out during the meal. And we each try to share a story about our day with the rest of the family.
Favorite family meal: We have many favorite meals including homemade pizza, quesadillas, and anything grilled!
Share one or two of your favorite mealtime prayers: We usually use this “generic” grace before meals:
God is great, God is good,
Let us thank him for our food, Amen.
Both Chris and Jaclyn said this prayer growing up. We like it because it is simple yet meaningful. Our extended families also say this prayer before meals, so we can use it at family gatherings also.
Thanks for sharing, Wahler family! Try out their family favorite mealtime prayer the next time you gather around your table. Enjoy the special printable coloring sheet as a way to learn it as a family.