Honor Him with Hospitality
Everyone waited patiently, studying the door with expectation while my brother stood guard at the window scanning the street for the car. "They're here!" he screeched. As my oldest brother walked through the front door, a huge grin lit his face. Finally returning from college, giant banners with hand drawn letters stated welcome home. Possibly one of my favorite traditions, welcoming family members home with gigantic signs, has always acted as our family reception. 1Peter 4:9 states, "Show hospitality to others without grumbling." Hospitality, the warm feeling of belonging and welcome, often conveys home. The Oxford dictionaries define hospitality as the friendly and generous reception and entertainment of guests,
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Showing this kind of generosity can BE extremely difficult, but with God's help it will build new, deep relationships. For example, a woman around her twenties attended to our church, and our family had the opportunity to meet her, we called her Scout. We discovered she did not have a place to stay, my parents felt that God called them to let Scout live in our house till she got back on her feet again. We grew to have a friendship that would never have happened had we not answered God's call. God places hospitality in our lives to create strong and thriving relationships. In addition, while Scout stayed in our house we had the chance to discuss some life decisions and some crucial Biblical principles. Most avidly, we prayed for her and her faith. Also hospitality produces an opportunity to speak into another's life, which instills a grateful and loving attitude. Overall, a hospitable attitude generates and solidifies …show more content…
A huge impact often follows where just a little of hospitality WAS shown. After noticing that the Thompson family upstairs did not have enough nourishment for their large family, Mrs. Lewis cooked them a hearty meal of delicious homemade food and brought it to their shabby apartment. Mrs. Lewis displayed sincere hospitality and generosity by forfeiting her time and supplies to show unmerited kindness to a family in need. Also, for another example, a young man in high school inhabiting a small apartment with absent father and an alcoholic mother needed a different place to live. Some parents came together and aided him in his expenses for food, and he moved into his good friend's grandma's house, who enjoyed having a young man around to help with household duties. Sometimes people need more than just food to fix things. Often they need relationships and attention. Hospitality possesses the power to change and assist people in a desperate time.. In conclusion, the trait of hospitality demonstrates kindness, generosity, and love to all who receive it. Proverbs 19:17 clearly states, "Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward them for what they have done." What we give the poor, we loan to God, He never forgets to reimburse. Obviously an important attribute, hospitality reflects Jesus' qualities, in the way He loves us, and takes care of us no matter what. Whenever a troubling storm creates