“Lord, be with this stranger,” I prayed, filling wasabi containers. “You know what he is going through and how his day is going. Bless him and show him your love.” I balanced plates in one hand, wiping the table with the other. You see, I’m a waitress at a little hole-in-the-wall sushi restaurant, and God has been teaching me about hospitality.
I used to think hospitality was for established housewives with guest rooms and soup spoons. But I’ve learned that hospitality can be found in the teenager’s car, the neighborhood park, the newlywed’s studio apartment, and at the cashier’s register. Hospitality isn’t a home or a table or even a meal.
Hospitality is a heart that is willing.
A heart that is willing to serve, tend, and give whatever they can to whoever is in front of them. Hospitality is living with a heart of generosity and with eyes vigilant to see people’s needs. This means it could look like so many things. Hospitality could be:
- An umbrella, a meal, or a prayer for the unhoused in your town
- A smile and a hug for a discouraged friend
- A listening ear for your elderly neighbor
- A ride to church for a fellow believer
- A grocery run for a sick family member
Jesus himself “had no place to lay his head” (Matthew 8:20) and yet he was hospitable to those who came to him by tending to their hearts and bodies through teaching, healing, prayer, and food.
Of course, that’s all fine and dandy until you look at your bank account. When it gets to single digits, hospitality gets painful. When you come home from work exhausted, providing a listening ear and counsel to a friend in need might not feel possible. Trust me, I get it.
If the key to hospitality is a willing heart, the key to a willing heart is trust in God.
We may not be able to afford generous giving of our time, money, and resources to others . . . but God can. The Bible even calls him “provider” (Genesis 22:14), and we see him providing for his people over and over again,
The stretching that hospitality requires can be painful, but it’s in the stretching that we get to see God work to care for others through us—but even more, to care for us. It is often in the pouring out that he fills us up, refreshing those who refresh others.
Lord God, thank you for how you have always taken care of me. I confess my fears about money, time, and energy, and I ask for your help. Remind me of your love for me, and bring to mind the past times in my life that you have provided. Help me to trust you.
Throughout the Day: The first step to hospitality is awareness. Don’t worry about doing anything yet, but today, try to identify three people who may be in need, big or small. Bring those three people to God in prayer and ask him if there is anything he wants you to do.
Photo Credit: Wolf Art