Life is better with people in it! Over the course of the last month, we've had an endless trail of people we love -- from east coast to west coast -- coming through our door to spend some time with us. We take great delight in welcoming people into our home whether they come from across the street or on the other side of the Atlantic. There's just something about welcoming people into our home and lives that feels healthy and right.
I am a self-confessed introvert. In other words, I get re-charged when I pull myself aside for some alone or quiet time. I also confess that I have in the past used that natural tendency as an excuse to keep myself distant and "safe" from the crowd and uncomfortable situations. I still need my solitude, and I am taking it today as I sit and read, write, and rest in the presence of the Father. It's healthy to know what you need, but it's also healthy to have the mindset of Christ and know what other people need as well.
I believe that our busyness in life is making war on our relationships and causing some to become emotionally and relationally bankrupt. In our addiction to fill our lives up with commitments and stuff, less and less of our quality time is being given to the people we love and those who love us. Due to technology, we are "in touch" with more and more people, but we seem to be touched by fewer and fewer. We hear such phrases as "crowded isolation" and "alone in the crowd" to describe how many are living their lives.
While our Christian circles seem to have ever-shrinking boundaries, we live in the midst of a generation that is burning for connnectedness! Many young people will give themselves lock, stock, and barrel to anyone -- ANYONE -- who will give them even a peep of belonging. All other considerations are secondary to their need to fill their relationship vacancy. This isn't an opportunity to "take advantage of their situation" as though we were pouncing on spiritual prey, but it is the time for the people of God to practice the hospitality of God!
In my opinion, hospitality is the most underrated gift! I've mentioned before how we tend to be drawn to the flashy gifts with all the spiritual shizzaz and hoorah that accompany them, but I have come to appreciate and value the quieter gifts, the ones practiced in the presence of the ones and twos and not the crowds. I respect those whose hands get dirty because they are working to free people from the mud of life or whose houses are a mess because of the trail of people who walk through for brief but powerful moments of connection with the mercy of God.
Too often, we connect hospitality with putting on a good performance with a spotless house and over-the-top meal. Hospitality is less about our homes and food than it is about opening our love and lives to others. I have known many macaroni and cheese saints whose openness and generosity of living served as the conduit of the grace of God for those who walked through their doors. I firmly believe that as people find safety and belonging in the presence of the children of God, they begin to understand the love, mercy, and grace of God for themselves. Our homes and our lives become the petri dish where faith and freedom, grace and goodwill are cultivated.
As believers, we believe in disciplining ourselves to practice the Presence of God. Should we not also practice the presence of people and give ourselves to the people the Father loves? I think so. Our generosity of living goes a long way to help those distant from God to understand His goodness!
"God sets the lonely in families..."
Psalm 68:6
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