The bible commands Christians to practice hospitality, Romans 12:13 It’s a command not an optional extra and one I have struggled with. Maybe you have too.
Often it is due to expectations I have put upon myself, expectations that resulted in me running around making sure the house was vacuumed, dusted and immaculate. As a writer, housework is not always one of my highest priorities. I’m more concerned with getting the next story, poem or blog written than whether the floor has been vacuumed or swept. So a visitor always meant a frantic clean up.
Next came the decision of what to feed these visitors, tying myself (and those in the household with me) in knots trying to second guess what people would eat. Some notable failures were the time I cooked a chicken dish, only to learn after my friend arrived, she never ate chicken. Or the time I cooked a casserole with mushrooms in it and the children in the family sat every one of the mushrooms around the edge of the plate and hardly touched anything else on the plate.
Then there was the friend who used to cater a four course meal, followed by myriad home made slices etc. When I invited them back to our place I felt I had to compete and do similarly. Needless to say, I became frazzled and any joy went out of entertaining.
The whole problem was she used to enjoy catering on this scale. I did not. As a result it ended up a major drama that made it no fun for me or my family. No wonder I struggled with the idea of hospitality.
In I Peter 4:9, Christians are urged to ‘be hospitable to one another without complaint.’ Let me say, I sure wasn’t doing too well in that regard. Weeks would go by and I would mutter ‘we should have people over’ but do nothing about it. Then I’d feel guilty for not inviting people over. But the truth was it was all too much effort. Maybe you have felt similarly. If you have, come and join me tomorrow when I give you a few ideas to help overcome this problem and enable you to take the strain out of being hospitable.
Bible verses from the New American Standard Version
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