Category: Hospitality

Making Space

The small city of Haarlem in the Netherlands holds the honor of being hometown to Corrie Ten Boom, one of my heroes of the faith. Corrie and her family helped many Jewish people to find safe houses and avoid Nazi death camps during World War 2. If you’re not familiar with her incredible story called The Hiding Place, add it to your must-read list.

Touring the cramped rooms of the Ten Boom’s home, I learned the family hired an architect to design a false wall with a secret door. This is where Jewish houseguests would rush into hiding when authorities came to the house. The wall made Corrie’s already tiny bedroom on the top floor several feet smaller. So, the decision to hide Jews came with a financial cost, caused great inconvenience, and put the family in jeopardy of being arrested. Yet, God’s love and compassion motivated them to take these risks.

Visiting her home and peering through the cut away wall into the famous hiding place fulfilled a desire I’ve carried for many years. Learning about the Ten Boom family’s passion to open their home despite its limited size and considerable risk was both inspiring and convicting. Even before the war, they welcomed a steady stream of visitors to their table, no matter how meager the meal or how cramped the room. Their selfless decisions blessed many lives and stand in stark contrast to the individualism rampant in our culture today. The Ten Boom family personified Paul’s instructions in Romans: “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” (Romans 12:12-13, NIV)

While there isn’t an exact parallel for us today, there are many ways followers of Jesus can be intentional about making space to show God’s love to others. Here are a few examples:

Physical Space: The Ten Boom family made space for others despite their tiny house. What would it look like for you to practice hospitality? Is there a physical space where you can connect with others regularly– whether it’s at home, work, a favorite coffee shop, or somewhere outside?

Temporal Space: The Ten Boom family made time for others and served them with genuine kindness. Can you create  time for others in your busy schedule? Building in more margin could enable you to be a better listener, to notice needs of others, or to be flexible and gracious with  interruptions.

Relational Space: The Ten Booms had an ever-widening circle of friends and acquaintances. Are you open to welcoming new people into your life? Have you considered there are individuals you don’t yet know who God will use in your life?

Financial Space: The Ten Booms were not wealthy but shared the resources they had with others and experienced great joy because of it. What if you set aside a few dollars monthly in a “generosity fund” and used it only to bless others? How much fun could it be spending God’s money to pay for a single mom’s babysitter or to support a student going on a mission trip? What about donating to a cause that moves you– like fighting human trafficking or providing help for victims of a natural disaster?

Any time we’re intentional about making space for people God places before us, we’re showing His love. Jesus declared “I am the light of the world” in John 8:12. This is the only one of the seven “I am” statements that He also declared over His followers: “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16, NIV)

In our individualistic society it’s common to think only of ourselves—our comfort, our convenience, our needs, and our wants. The more resources we have, the more we use them on ourselves. But for followers of Jesus, our purpose is to be lights in the world and to live out the call to love God and love people. We are blessed to be a blessing to others. The provision, comfort, and hope we receive aren’t meant to be hoarded, but shared, which brings to mind a sobering parable of Jesus:

“And he told them this parable: ‘The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’

Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’

But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:16-21, NIV)

God promises to give us everything we need, so let’s not waste time prioritizing personal comfort that’s temporary when we can be making eternal investments with our time and resources. Consider praying and asking the Lord one way you can make more space in your life to be a light and share His love with a world that desperately needs it.

Want to learn more about the Ten Boom family? Click here.

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Come to the Table

Standing in our driveway, we chatted with our neighbors who had moved in a few days before. Wanting to be welcoming, I offered to host a few families on our block for a backyard barbeque so we could introduce them to more people. I had every intention of following through, but life just got in the way and before I knew it, summer turned to fall and the school year was under way. The time for backyard gatherings had passed but the unfulfilled promise nagged at me all year.

So, when we turned the page on the calendar and welcomed in June, I started making plans.  With surprisingly little effort, the six families that live adjacent to us found a date to gather in our yard for dinner. Some had lived on the block for years, but still only knew each other vaguely. Others had never met, despite living only a few doors down. The group included a variety of ages, life situations, nationalities, backgrounds, belief systems and interests. The common connection between us was simply that we were neighbors, but it was enough.

We ate, drank, laughed, and played corn hole (a game that requires little skill and provides ample opportunities for chatting). We learned interesting things about each other and swapped stories about the history of our neighborhood. The last guests didn’t leave until after 11pm.

A few nights later, I hosted another gathering in our backyard. This time it was a group of women who knew each other through the lacrosse team our sons played on together. Their boys had been to Houseboats with our youth group and since I went on the trip, I wanted to answer questions and share the significant things that had happened there. Some of the women were friends, others were getting acquainted for the first time. Despite living in the same town and having kids of similar ages, our backgrounds, belief systems and experiences varied widely. And although we didn’t know each other well, we shared openly and authentically around the table. The food and setting were simple, but the act of gathering for uninterrupted conversation was meaningful to all of us.

Curious to see the significance of shared meals around the table, I thumbed through the New Testament to see what it had to say. Several stops in different books taught me why it’s so important. Here’s what struck me:

We’re Following Jesus’ Example:  Jesus regularly gathered with others to share meals. The book of Luke records at least five instances when He ate with people, and not all of them were friends and family. He ate with the His greatest critics, the Pharisees. (Luke 7:36-50 and Luke 14:7-24). He shared meals with sinners like tax collectors and prostitutes (Luke 5:29-32, Luke 7:36-56). He provided food for people who wanted to learn from Him–and He didn’t turn them away even when there were more than 5000 to feed (Luke 9:10-36). And He ate with His closest friends–most famously recorded at the Last Supper (Luke 22:14-23). For Jesus, meals were opportunities for meaningful conversation and powerful teaching.

The act of sitting at a table and breaking bread opens doors for thoughtful discussions. It paves the way for greater appreciation of one another’s similarities and greater understanding of one another’s differences.

We’re Following the First Disciples’ Example:  The book of Acts records the early days of the Christian church. I love this description of some of the first believers:

“They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity— all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.”  (Acts 2:46-47, NLT)

Gathering around food with other believers is an opportunity to enjoy fellowship—to celebrate our mutual love of Jesus and our shared desire to move in sync with Him. When we include non-believers, it’s an opportunity to draw them toward the warmth of community and authentic relationships while displaying the love of Christ.

We’re Showing Obedience to God:  The Apostles Paul and Peter both wrote extensively about how followers of Jesus are called to live and act. Included in their lists of behaviors to embrace are these simple words: “Practice hospitality” and, “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.” (Romans 12:13b and 1 Peter 4:9 NIV)

Note that showing hospitality isn’t about impressing others or being a great cook. It’s about opening your home and providing a place to share love and grow in relationships. Our yard isn’t fancy or particularly impressive. We bought our patio furniture over ten years ago. When we have more guests than we can fit at that table, we roll out our weathered old wooden table and use re-painted plastic chairs around it. But what we lack in sophistication, we make up for with warm hospitality and good conversation.

We’re Building Relationships and Creating Opportunities to Share Hope:  Followers of Jesus are called to give the reason for their hope (1 Peter 3:15). Jesus continually instructed His followers to tell others about the good news of life in Him. Sharing meals with others is a simple way to begin building relationships that allow us to do this. And when opportunities arise to share our faith, we can point people to Jesus who says, “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.” (Revelation 3:20, NLT)

Eating together opens the door to meaningful conversation, mutual understanding, and just plain fun. And for some, coming to the table is the first step towards discovering the hope of salvation found only in Jesus. Take time right now and pray about who God might be leading you to invite to your table, then act on God’s leading before you lose your inspiration!

Sidewalk Prophets’ song “Come to the Table” beautifully captures the significance of inviting others to sit down with you and let Jesus do the rest.