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The "hard to swallow" aspects of faith aren't punishments or tests. They're invitations to become the people God created us to be. They're opportunities to discover that God's way really is better than our way, even when it's harder.

Communion challenges us to love like Jesus loved. To forgive like Jesus forgave. To serve like Jesus served. To sacrifice like Jesus sacrificed. And honestly, that can feel overwhelming. It's much easier to follow a religion that asks us to be nice, show up on Sundays, and avoid the really bad sins.

Taking up our cross daily means waking up each morning and deciding to follow Jesus' way instead of our way. It means trusting that God's plan for our lives is better than our plan, even when we can't see how.

When Jesus becomes our spiritual nourishment, something different happens. We find a satisfaction that lasts. Not because our circumstances become perfect, but because we discover that God's love is enough to sustain us through whatever life brings.

Most of us never want to eat anything we deem to be disgusting. But sometimes it's the things that are the hardest to swallow that can change us the most. At the communion table Jesus talks about eating his flesh and drinking his blood (which sounds pretty gross), but when we take communion we can be changed forever.

I'm not going to sugarcoat it, following Jesus can feel hard to swallow. But Jesus doesn't try to sugarcoat it either because he knows that real change – the kind of transformation we desperately need – often requires us to do things that feel uncomfortable at first.

17 So then, if anyone is in Christ, that person is part of the new creation. The old things have gone away, and look, new things have...

in God's kingdom, nobody earns their place at the table. We don't get to sit with God because we're wealthy enough, smart enough, or good enough. We get to sit with God because God wants us there.

God prepares this feast "right in front of our enemies." Not after the problems are solved. Not when life gets easier. Not when all our enemies have been defeated. Right in the middle of our struggles, God sets a table.

When we gather around the communion table at church, we're not just participating in a religious ritual. We're joining a meal that connects us to Jesus and to two thousand years of believers who have also eaten this bread and drunk from this cup. We're part of something much bigger than ourselves.