When Hospitality Lands in Your Lap

Sacrificial service in the church doesn’t start with serving. It starts with being served by God. Then as we are satisfied in Him and who He’s revealed Himself to be in His crucified Son, we gladly overflow in service of others. --David Mathis

Augusta, Kansas is home to some of the most kind and generous people God has ever created, and a great many of them share fellowship with the First Baptist Church. Jessica and I have learned so much from their practice of Gospel-hospitality and have benefited first-hand from their generosity that we owe to them more than we could ever possibly give in return. We love you FBC Augusta and are seeking to put into practice the 'open-door attitude' that the Gospel commands and that you modeled for us so well.

Thinking through some of the implications of the Gospel as it relates to our home-life, time, and possessions, we thought we'd put down a few practical considerations concerning living hospitable lives in light of the Gospel.

First things first, we want our home to exemplify grace and love to friends and strangers alike, and always be prepared for drop-by guests.

Romans 12:13: "Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality"
1 Peter 4:9: "Show hospitality to one another without grumbling."

Keep in mind that:

1) Hospitality isn't about having the "right" house [or apartment or condo or whatever].
2) Hospitality isn't always convenient [in fact, true hospitality is rarely convenient].
3) Hospitality isn't always comfortable [if it is, we may need to repent].
4) Hospitality is always about serving others [forget this and you've lost everything].

Hospitality will look differently in different situations and with different hosts, but that doesn't change the fact that we need to be preparing our hearts in advance for what Gospel-hospitality may require of us. Most of us understand how carefully calculated hospitality works and often plan parties or schedule times to open our homes to friends and friends of friends. Calculated hospitality is wonderful! We love it! But it is easy. Though we open ourselves to serve others when we invite them over, the boundaries of our personal comfort remain squarely in-tact and unmoved. The real rub comes when hospitality lands in your lap.

How we handle spontaneous hospitality says to those in our care that we truly care for their needs more than our personal comforts. Every time we open our homes and hearts to someone in need we are serving Christ. We model with our lives the truth of the Gospel when we see the day's interruption or inconvenience as an opportunity to love Christ.

"Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me."
Jesus--Matthew 5.40

We model with our lives the urgency of the Gospel when we decide to get organized. Cleaning the kitchen immediately after dinner; picking up your room before you go to bed; making your bed as soon as you wake up; preparing for all of these things recognizes the fact that 'life happens' and we as Christians should not be caught off-guard in our responsibility to be hospitable.

We model with our lives the transparency of the Gospel with our attitude about our home.
Our homes reflect who we are. Our decorative pieces often tell stories about something in our lives--places, memories, gifts--and should be used as a way of opening up our lives to our guests. Also, have you ever considered that truth that your decorating sense can also serve as a testimony to your commitment to serving others.offering loving hospitality is easiest in a low-maintenance environment. So furniture and carpeting that can withstand spills, feet, and large crowds should be considered when decorating a house.

We model with our lives the provision of the Gospel supplies when we feed those among us. By thinking ahead and preparing double or triple portions, we can provide food for not only for ourselves and our guests, but for those in need as well. Keeping ready-to-bake cookies or brownies handy is always a good idea...for obvious reasons. :)

We model with our lives the love of the Gospel with our attitudes toward those around us. The food you throw together casually and quickly can and often does show more love than a gourmet meal. It's all about your attitude. The question to ask is: Is it more important to you to make your guests feel welcome and comfortable or to impress them with your cooking skills? A good way to sabotage the effects of hospitality is to apologize for your home--a messy room, a simple meal, the paper plates. We find that we do this alot.

Finally, we model with our lives the light of the Gospel when we serve our family in the same way God has served us. The hospitality we show to our spouse/children/roommates will radiate to our guests, and the hospitality we show to our guests will be communicated to our spouse/children/roommates, and it has a ripple effect outward.