A few moons ago, I taught a Bible study on the topic of unusual hospitality. It was interesting to see the opportunities that popped up soon after we said amen.
Hospitality is more than getting prepared like crazy, opening your home and taking photos to prove it on social media.
Hospitality is God's very heartbeat, it is who He is and that's why we practice it.
My husband and I never had a conversation about hospitality when we were dating. The good thing is that we both had conversations about it along the way. We both have a desire to be hospitable. We also have learned to adjust our expectations and execution of hospitality.
I won't bore you with this topic right now but Zeke and I learned that hospitality is expressed differently in different cultures.
Over the past years, we have learned that we want to be hospitable and we want to teach our children to do the same.
The thing you don't see on social feeds is that love is sacrificial. Love is not crabby and complaining but it is sacrificial. We have experienced that in the past and I'm glad we did. When one decides to be hospitable, they should expect to learn new things that will strengthen their character.
With all of that in mind, we welcomed five college students to our home last week. It was lovely. They were camp counselors, working at our church during that week. Their parent organizations has done that so much that they have it all down to a formula.
We were asked to house them for 7 nights, feed them breakfast and two dinners. For one of the dinners, we had Brazilian food. Everyone really enjoyed it, I'm pleased to say. For the other dinner, we couldn't be at home. We made chicken barbecue on the crockpot and left the sides all ready to go. I left a note for the kids and went on to choir rehearsal at church.
When I came back, I noticed the kids ate well and relaxed well. I learned that sometimes, just having food and space to recharge is all a guest really needs.
We are a musical family, so we introduced our guests to a few new songs, bands, etc. This is who we are and we are proud of how God made us.
The week was very interesting. The kids saw our guests more than we did because they went to camp with them. My husband and I only saw them in the morning and at night.
It was challenging to find out what they wanted to eat. I'm sure everyone had preferences but they were also extremely polite and no doubt about it, trained not to be difficult. I went to specialty stores. I tried to guess what they wanted to eat. I noticed they devoured my homemade banana nut chocolate muffins. I baked them a lot that week except for two days. What a great way to guess what people like: watch what they eat.
By the end of the week, my guests were ready to go back to their next assignment. I hope they enjoyed their very unique stay with us. We enjoyed hosting them.
I enjoyed hosting college students for the first time. I practiced what I personally preach once they left: I started with laundry and food.
I washed all the sheets and stored them so they can be used for the next set of guests. I quickly made a food plan for our family so that we would have a meal ready for us to enjoy.
Being hospitable is something Christians believe and live. My desire is to reflect the heart of God. I want be like He is, therefore, I practice Christian hospitality.
P.S.: My awesome husband built me a table for mother's day. It came handy when the 10 of us were able to sit around the same table for dinner.
Hospitality is more than getting prepared like crazy, opening your home and taking photos to prove it on social media.
Hospitality is God's very heartbeat, it is who He is and that's why we practice it.
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| dinner with friends is our fav! |
I won't bore you with this topic right now but Zeke and I learned that hospitality is expressed differently in different cultures.
Over the past years, we have learned that we want to be hospitable and we want to teach our children to do the same.
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| the always reliable slow cooker. |
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| a note, food and a free night |
We were asked to house them for 7 nights, feed them breakfast and two dinners. For one of the dinners, we had Brazilian food. Everyone really enjoyed it, I'm pleased to say. For the other dinner, we couldn't be at home. We made chicken barbecue on the crockpot and left the sides all ready to go. I left a note for the kids and went on to choir rehearsal at church.
When I came back, I noticed the kids ate well and relaxed well. I learned that sometimes, just having food and space to recharge is all a guest really needs.
 |
| time for music! |
The week was very interesting. The kids saw our guests more than we did because they went to camp with them. My husband and I only saw them in the morning and at night.
It was challenging to find out what they wanted to eat. I'm sure everyone had preferences but they were also extremely polite and no doubt about it, trained not to be difficult. I went to specialty stores. I tried to guess what they wanted to eat. I noticed they devoured my homemade banana nut chocolate muffins. I baked them a lot that week except for two days. What a great way to guess what people like: watch what they eat.
 |
| goodbye came so soon! |
I enjoyed hosting college students for the first time. I practiced what I personally preach once they left: I started with laundry and food.
I washed all the sheets and stored them so they can be used for the next set of guests. I quickly made a food plan for our family so that we would have a meal ready for us to enjoy.
Being hospitable is something Christians believe and live. My desire is to reflect the heart of God. I want be like He is, therefore, I practice Christian hospitality.
P.S.: My awesome husband built me a table for mother's day. It came handy when the 10 of us were able to sit around the same table for dinner.
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