If you build it

Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered (Mark 3:20)

Emma made her first neighborhood friends at the age of three when my parents gifted her a Rainbow Play System for her birthday. This backyard playset complete with slide, swings, trapeze, monkey bars, playfort, and sand box was quickly discovered by the neighbor kids who began to come over regularly to play. Fast forward 7 years and we installed an Easy Set pool in our backyard. History repeats itself, this time including friends from school. As Jeff and I make this transition from Green Bay to Kingston, we are again making changes that we hope will succeed in drawing others to us, friends and family alike, along with the long term goal of creating a retreat space for ministers in the church. My first memory of hospitality occured at my friend Amy’s house just down the block. Her mom would invite me to stay for lunch: peanut butter, banana, and honey sandwiches on homeade bread- heaven. One time when I was sleeping over, I became famished in the middle of the night and Amy modeled her mom’s hospitality, this time with ham and cheese roll ups. In high school I worked for several artists that belonged to the Sisters of Divine Savior. Their Art Studio was located in the old convent adjacent to my school. Each day after school I was greeted with tea, cookies, and warm smiles. The Sisters gave me my first opportunity to extend hospitality to others by hosting the Saturday open houses. I think I was more excited to be able to prepare the studio (brewing tea, setting out cookies, and making sure all was ready) than to be on the receiving end of their hospitality. Early on in my marriage until my deeper conversion in Christ I lost the heart of hospitality. When I invited others over it had to be carefully planned out well in advance. I had to make sure that I had plenty of time to make my house look “perfect”, I had to make sure that I made food to “impress.” God inspired this insight, [I wanted to reflect well in the other person’s eyes instead of wanting Jesus to be reflected in my own.} True Hospitality is a charism: a gift of the Holy Spirit given to an individual to be shared with another to meet their needs and to help facilitate an encounter with Christ. The Gospel verse above was from this past Saturday’s reading and it stood out to me, Jesus came with His disciples into the house, again a crowd gathered. This is a simple and beautiful definition of hospitality: to act in such a way that Jesus is right there with us. It is also a great definition of disciple: bringing Jesus into the house. I have changed my goals when I invite people over. I try with each invitation to think of small ways that the person I have invited knows that they are welcomed and loved. This might mean a pot of decaf coffee for the friend who has given up caffeine, the favorite dish for the friend recovering from illness, the cookies everyone loves and the gluten free ones for the one who is gluten free. It also means letting go of perfection. I am learning to extend the last minute invite where I see the need and letting go of careful planning. Most importantly, it means making sure that when I am with someone, I am truly listening to them because it is in the things that they tell me that the Holy Spirit can give me the nudges for what else I can do. This most important act of hospitality takes hospitality, and Jesus, out of our homes and wherever we are having conversation. Hospitality can happen anywhere. Jeff and I are building upon the foundation of hospitality one room at a time seeking to provide a space for visitors to come, rest, and be refreshed. God has made us stewards of this property; we seek to return on His investment one person at a time. This one Gospel line encourages me; if we build it and keep Jesus center, they will come. For now, while we are under construction and in transition I leave each of you with a prayer in the form of a song. It keeps playing in my head so I’ll follow the nudge…