Hospitality

About a month or so ago I found a podcast called “HomeWise.” I stopped wasting an excessive amount of time on Youtube and Netflix long ago; I wanted to find something that was beneficial but required less energy than reading (at least for me. I’m a slow reader and my mind often wanders to other things). Finding a good podcast proved to be harder than I imagined. I wanted something that interested me and was trustworthy, not total heresy. I tried this one on Christian marriage and parenting, turned out to be super sketch. Anyway, I eventually found HomeWise. It’s a fantastic podcast by a husband and wife, discussing a large variety of topics concerning marriage, parenting, and homemaking. For any of my girl friends out there (I guess guys too maybe?) I highly recommend looking through the topics and giving it a listen. 

One of the most recent episodes I listened to was on hospitality. The main thing that stuck with me was a mistake woman often make in their view of hospitality. It’s most common for mothers (because mess, because children) to overthink the state of their house when guests are coming. Well, obviously most people do not want their house to be a pigsty when they are having people over. What I mean is beyond that. It can be easy to get swept away with the desire to have everything perfect. Perfection is not required for hospitality. Christian hospitality is sharing your life with others, not creating a false image of your life every Sunday afternoon. Barbra, we all know you don’t make your kids stay in their church clothes every afternoon. We know you don’t use your nice china or have every single inch of your kitchen spotless each day. We know accidents happen, laundry doesn’t always get put away, and food sometimes gets burned.

I think it still sounds like I’m harking on a clean house. That’s not the issue, I love a clean house. The issue is people focusing so much on creating perfection that they lose sight of the purpose of hospitality. While tidying up is nice, what is more important is extending your love and life to others, complete with the brokenness that we all share.