We may balk at entertaining, but Christ calls on us to practice hospitality.
When I was in high school, a Christian group called Joy, Inc. came to sing at our church. Our family agreed to house a couple of group members for the night. And in the morning we drove them back to the church so they could be on their way to the next concert.
One of the guys that stayed at our house added this cryptic message after his goodbye, “When you get home, read Hebrews 13:2.”
All the way home, I repeated–Hebrews 13:2, Hebrews 13:2, Hebrews 13:2–to myself so I wouldn’t forget it.
At home I raced to my nightstand and opened my Bible to Hebrews 13:2:
Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.
Ahh. Funny guy.
I may not find me entertaining strangers often, but hospitality is one of the ways we can show Christ’s love to others. But I have to admit I often get hospitality all wrong. I make it more about the table settings than the people. I pay more attention to the dinner rolls than to the guests.
Lately I’ve been studying the spiritual disciplines. Hospitality is listed as one of those spiritual disciplines. It seems odd to think of hospitality as a way to grow in faith.
But I think that hospitality can be a spiritual exercise if it stretches us to love others as Christ loved us. It helps us grow in faith if we step out of our comfort zone and invite people over even before the house is perfect (because if we wait until the house is spotless, hospitality may never happen). Hospitality helps us grow in service, humility, and putting other first. It helps us to receive God’s blessings as we share what we already have with others.
Romans 12:13 says:
Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
I’m encouraged by that verse. We are to practice hospitality. We won’t always get it perfect, but the more we practice it, the more we’ll improve. So I’m learning to make hospitality more about the people than the food, more about the love and laughter than a clean house.
Practice hospitality.
Next Step: Take a chance and practice hospitality. Don’t worry about place settings and fancy food. Make people feel valued and special.