In 1996, I went to South Africa for a summer with a student Christian organization. This organization had a small room for their club on campus at University of Durban-Westville. The students in the Christian club were Zulu, Sesotho, Colored, and Indian. They were about the only multi-ethnic club on campus in a post-apartheid South Africa that had de-segregated only two years prior. Their common bond was Christ.
Each day, many of the students would come to their small room in order to eat lunch together. My campus director had briefed me on a practice that I found to be true during those lunch sessions. In the meeting room, those with food already, offered me part of their lunch. I was free to take part of what they had, but in turn, it was socially correct for me to offer my food to others in the room or those who would arrive later. Often, students would eat parts of several lunches, rather than just their own. The idea was that if we offer part of our own meal, then someone else will have part of their lunch to make up the difference. Sometimes, if it didn't work out as planned, a person simply might give part of their lunch away and not eat a full meal.
The principle was quite Christian like. In the scriptures, Jesus says that a true friend demonstrates his love for another by offering his or her life for them. Maybe offering part of my sandwich isn't making the ultimate sacrifice through death, but it is a little sacrifice to my own desire, which is to be fully fed for the day. In turn, I trust God will meet my needs either through the provision of another or through the supernatural strength I need to live without all of my needs.
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