Communion

At Coram Deo, we do Communion in a free-form way, leaving it available to those who want to participate toward the end of the worship service. I prefer this, because when Communion is handed out and someone is talking right up until you are supposed to eat and drink, it makes it hard to reflect. I prefer to reflect, and I use the time as an occasion to remember. This is how I do it:

1) The Bread. We generally have either broken wafer crackers or pre-bought "communion bread." I prefer the wafers, because they bear more resemblance to the matza bread it represents. Specifically, it is not a uniform color, and it has small holes in it. As the bread is a representation of Jesus' body, this is an occasion to remember who was "pierced for our transgressions." I use this opportunity to confess as needed, break the piece of craker that I hold, as a reminder that Jesus' body was broken for me, and give thanks that my sins are, in fact, forgiven.

2) The Cup. Grape juice instead of wine. That's us. Jesus said that the cup represents the New Covenant in his blood. The applicable reference here is to Jeremiah 31:31, a promise of a new covenant with Israel, where God "will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it;" along with promises of a new intimacy with God. The cup, for me, is an occasion to remember this, to ask that God would continue to write his law on my heart - namely, to make me like Him from the inside out. The cup represents Jesus' blood - the offering which sealed this contract, and which makes it effective. That is quite an occasion for giving thanks, as well.

Both are an occasion to remember Jesus. I have found this the most effective way for me to do so.