THE ORIGINAL SOURCE FOR WOMEN'S LEADERS SINCE 2001
working toward a people focused church generation and not an event based church generation
Back to Simple Biblical Hospitality
Julia Bettencourt
March 18, 2020
Let’s talk about hospitality for a minute. Hospitality should play a big role in our ministry-related events. We need to learn to have a desire to care for people. Caring for people doesn’t mean you have to go all out and decorate every area of an event for them. It doesn’t mean you have to give your guests things like over-the-top door prizes and retreat bags. It doesn’t mean you have to overpack an event with games and activities.
Biblical hospitality is so simple. It is all about caring for people’s needs. When we actually look at how hospitality was expressed in the Bible, it was all about treating outsiders and strangers with love and care.
How do we make those on the outside feel welcome to our church and community through our events? First, we know that stuff and things don’t fulfill people. Things will never bring us lasting joy, so why do we think giving gifts and visitor welcome bags will fulfill people? It won’t. Can you engage in that and have it make a difference? Well, yes, but not in and of itself.Door prizes, favors, and gifts for visitors don’t show someone that you care totally. Love and compassion must be shown. You must to get to know people. You must pray for them. You can make a difference in their lives when you get to know people on a deeper level and show them love. Gifts and trinkets are not going to get the job done.
Look what Jesus said.
By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. John 13:35 (KJV)
He didn’t say they will know we are His disciples by how many door prizes we give away, how much is in our retreat goody bags, how much we work on event backdrops, how much we spend on decorations, or how much we feed event attendees. Jesus said we are to love people.
You see a trend here? It always comes back to focusing on people. Biblical hospitality is such a wonderful way to do that.
When we think of the word “hospitality” today, it is so skewed from the original meaning of biblical hospitality. We conjure up in our minds extravagant breakfast buffets at restaurants and hotels. We conjure up washcloths shaped like some animal waiting in a hotel bathroom. We conjure up bed linens turned down with a magazine and pretty wrapped chocolates on the side table.
Even in the Christian world, we conjure up in our minds fancy fellowships and fancy teas, beautiful food set out for buffet lines, and gift baskets used as door prizes. None of that is real biblical hospitality. Real biblical hospitality refers to meeting people’s needs, protecting them, and helping them.
I’m not implying that all of that is wrong or that there isn’t any merit in doing extra things from time to time. I am saying that we need to stop considering it biblical hospitality and get back to really concentrating on people. We have this impression that everything is about the beautiful.
We see this on social outlets. Beautiful parties. Beautiful meals. And there is nothing wrong with beautiful things, but it has to have its place and we can’t confuse it with biblical hospitality. Friends, true hospitality isn’t always beautiful to look at or to participate in either.
Sometimes there is washing other people’s feet involved. Not literally, but we can learn from that lesson Jesus showed us with the washing of the feet in John 13.
So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.John 13:12-17 (KJV)
This teaches us that we must see to people’s needs and that isn’t always pleasing or alluring. There may be some roughness to sand down and get through when we are administering biblical hospitality. There may be some odor to endure. There may be some griminess to the work involved in being hospitable. This kind of hospitality isn't all fluff. It's the real deal. It's what helps get other people through a rough patch. It's what gets in there and meets people's needs. It's what helps point others to Jesus. It's what shows our love like Jesus.
My prayer is that as women's leaders we can all get back to that simple biblical hospitality among the women of our churches.
Copyright ©2020 Julia Bettencourt
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