Hospitality

"Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it."  -Hebrews 13:2

When we have company one of the things I love to do is set a pretty table.  Between my husband and me we go all out in preparing the food.  Then we let our guests entertain us with their "story".  We've had guests from France, Germany, Portugal, Mexico, Norway and various parts of the country, mainly due to hosting our son's college friends or our own hosting of foreign exchange students.  Some of our guests are local but are world travelers so we have "visited" even more countries in this way.

The encounter that stands out most, though, is one that happened in the 1970s when we lived in a townhouse community.  It was soon after my husband had left for work when there was a knock at my door.  I opened it to find an older woman in a bath robe holding a coffee cup.  She explained that she lived down the street in one of the single homes and had no power.  Our house happened to be the only one with the porch light on so she figured we had power.  She was hoping I could fill her cup with coffee!  I happened to have coffee made so I invited her in and filled her cup.  I never saw her again after that, but I was left with the feeling that I had just "shown hospitality to an angel."  Whether I did or not, that incident made such an impression on me that when years later we'd moved and started going to church and my preacher preached on the Hebrews 13:2 verse I knew I was being called to open my home to guests.  I do not feel it is by co-incidence that we've been provided with the space and the means to open our home to strangers, many of whom have since become friends.  

I am grateful that when I open my heart to God He opens doors of friendship and love.