::hospitality of heart and home::

I love that this icon came up as one of the first
images of Christian hospitality
Guess what? I did an adult thing! *drum roll please* I cooked dinner for 4 friends and myself over spring break! Aren't you proud of me? AND, it wasn't just mac'n'cheese or spaghetti and meatballs. I made rice, roasted broccoli, steamed dumplings and my friends helped to make Chinese flatbread. We ate almost all of it so I think they liked it and everything turned out okay. We ate food, hung out, reminisced about the summer at camp we'd spent together, caught up on each other's lives, and had sweet fellowship. One of my friends texted me the next day saying, "thanks so much for putting on that company. It was great." A couple days later, I read the story of Abraham entertaining the angels unaware in Genesis 13 and how he considered himself honored to be able to host them. I realized that that was my response to hosting my friends in my on-campus house. It was a blessing to me to have them come over and spend time with me. It wasn't all about what I could do for them or my hosting them but a mutual relationship of giving to each other and ministering to one another which, in my opinion, is a beautiful definition of Christian hospitality.

My lovely friends for whom I made dinner
Hospitality is something that has always been a part of my life, so much so, that is a natural and (mostly) unconscious rhythm both at home and at school. My parents raised my siblings and I on having people over for Thanksgiving and Christmas who didn't have a place to go, frequently hosting people for meals, and making dinner for the local family homeless shelter in Portland, OR. When we moved to live and work at His Mansion, hospitality took on new meanings as we grew older and more capable of cooking food and preparing our home. I more consciously began to understand what it meant to open our home when our family hosted book club, staff fellowship, pie baking, graduation dinners, and all kinds of other events in-between. We had the privilege and the provision--thanks to God's faithfulness--to feed people and have them spend time in our house. This was something my parents believed we had been entrusted with and they wanted us kids to learn how to be hospitable. I understood even more what this meant when I went to college and appreciated those who gave me a home cooked meal and time out of the dorm and off campus, the way my family did for our staff and residents at His Mansion. I didn't realize how much I had embodied this value of hospitality until I came to college and tried to figure out how to host people in the furniture filled dorm room I lived in. I did manage it a few times in a little tight, very cozy quarters. It became easier when I moved to an apartment and even more so now I live in a house! But it is something I love doing. Inviting people over, feeding them, playing games together, having both serious and silly conversations, it all brings joy to my heart and gives life to my soul.

In my small group training time, we discussed the three modes of hospitality: social, physical, and spiritual. I believe the physical embodiment is super important. Food is the vehicle/catalyst for the other two modes, honestly. It also caters well to my love language of giving. People like receiving food and I like giving it! I love the gathering round and the fellowship that occurs over the table. However, I am also reminded of the emotional and spiritual aspects of hospitality in welcoming someone into your heart by actively listening, asking thoughtful questions, and just being with someone. That is hospitality in giving someone a safe space to be heard, knowing they can always come to you whenever, and understanding your love and care for them. There is an incredible beauty in this hospitality of the heart that does not require a house or food to happen. This kind of hospitality can be practiced anywhere and at any time. It is just as needed as the physical hospitality and I believe a Christian understanding of hospitality intertwines all three of them. So you don't have to have a big house, fancy food, or hilarious icebreakers to be hospitable. It's possible to show hospitality while you're sitting in a coffee shop with a friend, late night chatting in a dorm room or apartment, or taking time to talk to someone after church. Hospitality is about where you define home and sometimes that's simply in your heart.

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