Who Is Sitting At Your Table?

Recently, a short but deeply confronting teaching by Louis Giglio found its way to me. The title was simple: “Don’t Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table.” Yet the implication carried real spiritual weight. Giglio uses the imagery of a dinner table to describe the inner place of conversation, influence, and authority in a believer’s life.

It is the place where meaning is formed, where interpretation happens, and where voices gain access to the heart.

Scripture often uses the language of tables to describe fellowship and authority. Psalm 23 declares that the Lord prepares a table for us in the presence of our enemies. God remains the Host. He provides. He sustains.

The presence of opposition does not imply shared authority. The danger arises when we allow voices that oppose truth to move from proximity into participation.

The Enemy rarely storms in. He waits for an open chair. He studies our wounds and disappointments. Then, with a whisper, he sows doubt and distortion. You are failing. God is far. No one understands.

These are not the words of our Shepherd. Scripture calls him the Accuser, and his power is in deception, not truth.

This truth is not distant. Even after years of walking with Christ, I found I had let the Deceiver speak into my inner life. He did not need my permission. He only needed my inattention.

Discouragement crept in. Trust weakened. The pattern was always the same.

The battle moved inward. Scripture says, “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” When lies are left unchallenged, they shape who we become.

Peace fades. Discernment dulls. The mind, meant for renewal, becomes restless.

So I had to ask: Where was Jesus at my table?

God does not leave us in struggle. The Holy Spirit remains, even when we feel alone. What seems like absence is often His gentle restraint. Like a loving Father, He invites us to return, but He does not force our surrender.

Jesus, as part of the Triune Godhead, was never absent from the table. He remained present, faithful, and attentive.

Yet He does not dominate the conversation. He speaks the truth. He exposes lies. He gently calls us back to surrender. But He respects human will.

Scripture consistently affirms that we choose whom we listen to, whom we obey, and whom we allow to shape our thinking.

Too often, we let old wounds and fears speak louder than Christ. We give authority to thoughts that oppose truth. In doing so, we invite the Enemy to a table that belongs to the Lord.

This message did not arrive by coincidence. Scripture makes clear that God works intentionally, even in timing.

I encountered it during a season of emotional intensity. A brief reunion with my family brought joy and grief together. It surfaced unresolved strain alongside deep love.

Combined with the weight of transition, vocational uncertainty, and the complexity of a prolonged season of waiting, the conditions were ripe for inner compromise.

Even as I sought God, I let another voice shape my view. The Enemy used my fatigue and vulnerability. He twisted relationships, magnified rejection, and sowed doubt about my calling.

The lies came quietly, but they stole peace and clarity.

The danger was not in open rebellion, but in slow erosion. Trust faded. Perspective shifted. The table no longer reflected the truth.

This is why we need foundations. Discipleship is more than knowing Scripture. It is learning to discern.

Paul tells us to take every thought captive to Christ. Not every thought deserves a seat at the table.

Maturity means watching the table. It means testing every voice by the Word. Repentance is not always dramatic.

Sometimes it is simply reclaiming the table, naming the lies, and letting Jesus lead the conversation again.

So, I ask you, as I ask myself: Who sits at your table today?

Not who is nearby. Not who shouts the loudest. But who shapes your thoughts and decisions?

The answer shapes your peace, your obedience, and your endurance.

Jacques Munnik