A few days ago, I wrote about eating out and taking out -- not out of desperation, but in a planned way.
While it is easy to continue your mealtime spiritual practices when you take out, eating out can be a challenge. Our son is 5, and we have been praying together for meals his entire life, so he sees nothing odd about praying out loud when we are at a restaurant. Just yesterday when we were at a fair, he started us in a singing prayer. He didn't mind at all that there were other people around us.
My hunch is that he will mind when he is older. You may feel a little uncomfortable praying out loud in public. So how can you celebrate the spiritual dimension of eating when you're eating out? Here are some ideas:
1. Pray silently -- Have a moment of silence to allow each person around your table to pray silently. You can help your children be ready for silent prayer by talking about it at home before you leave for the restaurant. Tell your children that when you are at the restaurant, they can pray silently however they want. If your family has a favorite prayer at meals, say that your child might want to pray that prayer silently.
2. Give thanks -- Our family recently started a spiritual practice of giving thanks to God before we pray. Invite those around the table to say for what they want to thank God (just be sure you let everyone know they can pass if they choose). You can follow this time of thanksgiving with silent prayer.
What are your ideas?
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