Thursday Three For All: Holiday Hospitality, Compel Them To Come In, And Violin-Playing Truck
It’s Thursday, kiddies: the day when I roll out a few things I’ve been reading over the past week. Three of ‘em, to be exact. Enjoy. (Remember: click on the big bold print to read the entire article.)
3 Prayers To Help You Be Hospitable This Holiday Season
(via @_michaelkelley) I don’t know about you, but after a rushed Christmas season I like to cocoon and check out for a week. The only problem is that I’m surrounded by family I only see a couple of times a year. Michael challenges me to get back in the game.
Hospitality was vitally important to the spread of the gospel in the days when the church was just beginning to flourish because when traveling to a new area, people were at the mercy of the people who lived in that city. Christians took hospitality seriously, and because they did, the gospel was able to take root as it spread through displaced Christians who were welcomed into the homes and lives of others.
But times have changed. Despite the fact that much of our lives is lived in a “public” way online, most people value privacy more than they did in the past. Though we might put forth a version of ourselves through social media, we still really like our personal space, personal thought, and personal time. The very nature of hospitality runs counter to this. Hospitality is sharing what we consider to be “personal” with each other in a sacrificial way.
Compel Them To Come In
(via @tonymorganlive) Yup. That’ll preach.
I was once working with a church that was preparing for their weekend services and they invited many guests. The week before the services, the church leaders encouraged their congregation to invite others and to tell those who had been invited, “Join us, for everything has been prepared with you in mind.”
But everyone who was invited began making excuses. The first said, “I have just bought a new vacation house, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.”
Another said, “My kid is in a tournament this weekend with five games, and I’m on my way to see them. Please excuse me.”
Still another said, “I just entered a new relationship and we’re spending time together, so I can’t come.”
Truck Plays The Violin
(via @laughingsquid) And in the “We have too much time on our hands” department…
photo credit: Jason Mathis
