Hospitality has always been a concept I struggle with. We as Christians are certainly called to be hospitable to our neighbors (Hebrews 13:2). And we have a lot of great examples in the bible to learn from (Acts 2:42-47). So why is it so tough?
I love people and I don’t mind cleaning and cooking, but I’m always afraid of what they’ll think if I invite them over. I’m afraid of what they’ll think of my apartment, my food, my entertainment and the list goes on. I obsess. Everything has to be perfect. I clean for a whole week leading up to an event.
Maybe this trait of mine is not bad itself. I mean, it’s good to make my guests feel important and I should want to make them as comfortable as possible in my home. But my stressing about this is very selfish. It’s all about me, not them. I’m worried about what they will think of me and my home. I always wonder how much they will like me after coming over and if they will ever come back. It worries me way too much!
It’s always been like this. As a kid, I worried my friends would make fun of my music, or how I decorated my room. I always dreaded having a birthday party because I didn’t want people to think I was lame. I didn’t want to be stuck with friends over at my house trying to watch a movie but nobody liked anything from my sad collection of VHS’s.
But this is ridiculous. I’m not perfect and I shouldn’t be ashamed of that. Who cares what they think, right? And besides, it’s not about me. Hospitality is about the other person whom I am welcoming into my home. I should stop thinking about myself. They most likely aren’t worried about how great my food is and how clean my apartment is. They probably don’t even notice little things I worry about. And if they do, who cares? I’m human. I have a life. And I’m putting forth the effort to invite them into my home. As Betsy (host of this link up) so beautifully put it, “In reality, it doesn’t matter how well you prepared. What people will remember is how well you cared.”
Showing hospitality to others can be a beautiful and fulfilling act if we let it. But it’s only possible when we take the emphasis off of ourselves and put the focus on our guests. There’s nothing wrong with trying to be your best and present your home/food/entertainment in the best way possible, but as soon as your reason behind it becomes making yourself look good instead of making your guests comfortable, you have a problem.
Do you struggle with hospitality? Or does it come naturally to you?
