Verse of the Day for May 11

Of all the examples Paul could have chosen, he picks the two things everybody does several times a day. Whether therefore ye eat, or drink.

The setting was an argument about food. Some believers in Corinth worried about meat sold after idol sacrifices. Paul himself was being criticised for meals he had given thanks over, evil spoken of because of an ordinary dinner.

His answer lifts the whole quarrel to a higher place. Eat or do not eat, but do all to the glory of God, and do not trip anyone else up while you do it.

That is good news for the season after the excitement fades. The conference is over, the first glow has dimmed, and the days are back to breakfast, lunch and supper. Paul says those meals are not gaps between spiritual moments. They are the moments.

So the plate of beans at your desk, the tea you share with the security guard at the gate, the meal you eat alone in a quiet flat, can each be received with thanks and offered back. It is not glamorous. It was never meant to be.

Give thanks for the next meal as if it mattered, because it does.

Ordinary days are where most of God's glory is quietly given.