1 Peter 4:9
Open your homes to each other without complaining.
Luke 14:12-14
Then Jesus said to
his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your
friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do,
they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a
banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you
will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at
the resurrection of the righteous."
Father in Heaven-
Thank you for giving me
the miracle of a Christian home. This home is not mine. It belongs to
You. Often the details of entertaining consume me. I want to impress
people with my meticulous well kept place, my clever decorating, and my
gourmet cooking. I am so busy with the preparations that I forget WHO I
am serving.
Empower me to put
people before things. Instead of putting away the dirt, I will put away
my pride and allow others to see my humanness. Shape my home into a
place free of false pretensions where people can relax and be
themselves.
Open my heart to a
needy family in my community. I will obediently open my home as a place
of rest and healing for them. It is my desire to use the gifts You've
lavished on me to glorify You. I am Your humble servant, please show me
how to practice biblical hospitality for Jesus' name sake. Amen.
The root word of
hospitality is "hospital." Hospitals are places to rest and heal. Our
homes should be places where people can come to rest and heal. Do you
receive exquisite meals at a hospital? Are hospitals fussily decorated?
Do hospitals only serve friends and family?
Think
of your home as a hospital. Consider inviting to your home: the elderly
neighbor who is always alone, the neighbor who's recovering from
surgery, the family that just received devastating news, the neighbor
that's unemployed, or someone new to your community.
What's keeping you from demonstrating biblical hospitality? Resolve to aside your agenda to be more hospitable this year.
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