Surprising acts of Hospitality

A few years ago while at a dinner party I was introduced to a bunch of people as the evening went along. As with any event like this so many people introduce themselves to you that it is rare that you even remember the name of three of the people present. But there was something different at this party. It was the week before Passover and one of the people I was introduced to was a mother and her two daughters.

They stood out because they invited me to share Passover with them. It was jarring invitation to say the least, since I didn't really know them and they had just met me and yet here she was inviting me to join her and her family at table. It was a surprising act of hospitality.

At the heart of who we are as people of faith is hospitality. Surprising acts of hospitality define who we are as Christians and help remind us that we belong. We so often think of hospitality as little more than entertaining guests – family, friends, and sometimes, strangers. We prepare food , clean our homes and issue invitations, as a way of sharing our hearth and home with others. Sometimes we’re blessed and filled by those to whom we’ve shown hospitality, and sometimes we just wish they would go home.

Offering hospitality can be both energizing and draining, depending on our mood, the personality of the guests, and the degree of perfection we try to achieve in what we offer. At its foundation, we know that hospitality is simply welcoming others into our space and sharing the simple things of food and conversation with them. But surprising acts of hospitality are more than just food and conversation, it is about being vulnerable as the host and a sense of belonging as the guest. Jesus in his ministry often showed the least in society that they belonged to the kingdom around food, but it wasn't the food it was the feeling that endeared them to Jesus. That same thing draws us to him 2000+ years later.

We all want to be belong. If we simply remember how we felt when someone opened their heart to us, it won’t be so difficult to do it for someone else.

P.S. I did go to the Passover meal and had a wonderful time, along with making three new friends.

Let mutual love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.
-Hebrews 13:1-2