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Do you ever have things that God is teaching you that just seem to come at you from every angle until you start to apply what He wants you to learn? Lately I feel like I’ve been bombarded with a fresh awareness of showing biblical hospitality. From our ladies’ Bible study in 1 Peter, to the books I’ve been reading, to the books Tad has been reading, God is showing me that hospitality isn’t something optional; it’s a Scriptural command!
1 Peter 4:9 says, “Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.”
Romans 12:13 commands, “Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.”
Hebrews 13:2 states, “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”
1 Timothy 3:2 and Titus 1:8 both list “hospitable” as a qualification for an elder (pastor), and 1 Timothy 5:10 lists hospitality as a characteristic of a godly widow.
I know it’s been easy for me to “brush off” this command to show hospitality with a million different excuses: my kids are little, our finances are tight, my house isn’t clean enough, our schedule is too busy, etc.
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be writing a bunch of posts about hospitality.
Topics I hope to include:
- Hospitality: What it is and isn’t
- Combating the excuses
- Why comparison robs us of the joy of hospitality
- Outside the box: Unconventional ways of showing hospitality
- Showing hospitality in a small home
- Showing hospitality with young children
- Showing hospitality when money is tight
- Showing hospitality when you hate to cook
- Simple menu ideas to make hospitality very do-able for you! (Check out my Pinterest board for ideas!)
- Resources for learning more about hospitality (aka books I love!)
- Interviews with godly older women who routinely practice hospitality – here and here
- And maybe more! 🙂 – view all the posts here
“my house isn’t clean enough” is my main excuse, although I know I need to get over it. I am looking forward to your posts! Julia
Living in a parsonage has been a new experience for us. Unexpected visitors are usually greeted with our dogs barking and myself frantically picking up this or that in order for the house to appear “clean.” Don’t get me wrong: I love the company! However, it doesn’t lessen the overwhelming feelings I get when someone decides to “pop by.” Courtney
I love hospitality and wished more people practiced it today! I’m looking forward to your posts and ideas!
Right now it’s the impending arrival of baby #4. I barely have energy to get food on the table for our family. I’m really excited to be more involved with hospitality soon though! As soon as I’m back on my feet again, I want our home to be a comfy place for people to be.
You’re excused for right now! 🙂 You holding up okay?
For me, it’s been the homeschooling schedule, my house isn’t clean, and my husband needs to work (he works in the evenings, if we have company it cuts into his work time). But, I can still figure out ways to show hospitality. I need to work on that more. Even aside from all those, sometimes, my heart just isn’t in it. I just don’t feel like doing the work to prepare (even simple preparations), and I just don’t feel like having someone over. But, other times I do. I guess maybe I need to make it a matter of prayer. I’m looking forward to reading more in your series!
Thanks for your honesty! I am finding that even when I don’t “feel” like showing hospitality, God blesses me tremendously through it anyway! I’m finding that while it might be a spiritual gift, it is also a discipline (like many other things in the Christian walk).
By biggest obstacle to hospitality is not knowing how to cook! (My husband had to teach me how to make rice and canned chili.) With a very tight budget and as the mother of “two under two,” I’d love to find really easy, cheap, healthy, make-ahead or Crockpot meals that company would actually enjoy eating! 🙂
So many thoughts and memories as I stumbled across you on Pinterest this morning. I’ll start by sharing a story(I’ll try and make it brief)
More years ago than I would like to admit,I was a new wife working with my USMC husband in a Teen Challenge coffeehouse that we had inherited in Okinawa ,Japan.During one of those evenings,while waiting for things to begin,I noticed a book entitled”Open heart ,Open Home” by Karen Burton Mains.My life was changed from nearly the first page. So when I caught sight of that author on pinterest I was immediately drawn in.I am delighted to see another generation inspired by our call to hospitality. Can’t wait to follow along and read of you journey. Wish you were at my kitchen table right now…
Thank you so much for your sweet comment, Sharon!