When you think about about hospitality, what immediately comes to mind?
Coffee and donuts at church? That major where you study hotels and restaurants?
And did you ever notice that “hospital” and “hospitality” share some letters in common?
Here’s a story where Abraham just happens to be hanging out on his front porch when three strangers appear out of nowhere.
Now, one of the lessons I learned in kindergarten was: Do not talk to strangers. So if I had been Abraham, I would have not made eye contact, and it would be a rather brief story. However, apparently Abraham did not go to my kindergarten, or at least missed that day. Because makes a big fuss welcoming this interruption to his day.
Abraham doesn’t know it yet, but one of these strangers turns out to be God himself. Good thing Abraham skipped that kindergarten lesson about strangers.
I wonder what would happen if we thought about hospitality in terms of making space to welcome strangers into our life.
I wonder what would happen if I were to walk up to a stranger and say, Hey, we don’t know each other, but I believe you’re important enough to make some space for you in my life.
That’d be weird, huh. Might be a radical way to live the Christian life.
What about you? What do you see?
Fiftyeight 