The Gospel Comes with a House Key By Rosaria Butterfield – Chapters 9-10 and Conclusion
Why is hope necessary in hospitality?
Thinking of the necessity of hope in hospitality has me thinking of the unknown fruit of our hospitality. Similar to much of the work we do to show others who Christ is, we must come to terms with the fact that we may never see the fruit of our hospitality. This is what makes hope a necessity in hospitality. We have to trust in Christ and hope that when we begin a work in his name, that is when we are hospitable to others for the sake of showing them Christ, that he will see it through to fruition.
What do you hope for in hospitality?
I hope to point others to Christ and be a conduit for his love, mercy, grace, and truth.
What does the future of hospitality look like for you?
The future of hospitality for me looks intentional.
After having a family from church over for dinner last week, I realized that that was the first time, in the 15 years since my wife and I moved out of her parent’s basement, that we had ever invited anyone over for dinner. Sure we’ve had people over for birthday parties, recently we started hosting a game night, and we even hosted a couple of WrestleMania watch parties with the kids. But we never had anyone over for dinner, and we never had anyone over for no other reason than to build relationships and spend time together in fellowship. I can say with confidence after dinner last week that we’ve been missing out.
So the future for us looks like more of this.
What are some practical things you are going to commit to and implement after reading this book?
This book, along with our spiritual disciplines the last few weeks, helped me connect hospitality and service. Service is my top spiritual gift, and I am always on the lookout for ways to serve. So what does this look like practically?
A few weeks ago, when we had the assignment to serve our neighborhood, there was a chance for snow at the beginning of the week. My idea was to get my boys together and go shovel driveways around the neighborhood. When I woke up and saw the snow falling, I immediately ran to the store and bought some extra shovels and a couple of bags of ice melt. However, sadly, we didn’t get much snow, and what we did get didn’t stick to the roads and driveways. While yards were covered, there simply wasn’t anything for us to shovel. Hope for another opportunity came again last week but only ended up being a repeat of the first.
Nonetheless, after purchasing the spare shovels and ice melt, I told my wife that I want to become known as that family in the neighborhood that shovels everyone’s driveways. We now have the shovels, and with myself and three sons, we’ve always had the workforce. So now we wait for the opportunity. It’s funny because, as someone who doesn’t like the cold, and even less the snow, I now find myself hoping, and even praying, for it.