Hospitality 101
Sharing lives--Connecting journeys—Following Christ
Romans 12:13-16
Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, mourn with those who mourn, live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position…….
In 1990 our church sent several teams in succession to do construction work in Chillian, Chile. Our purpose was to construct a multipurpose building in the city of Chillian in support of the ministry efforts of Pastor Sergio and Maria Loyola. The building would be utilized as a seminary, for worship gatherings and as a general community center. Our church sent 3 teams for periods of 3 weeks each for a total of nine weeks and for a bunch of gringos learning to build the “Chillian” way I thought we did pretty well. The local congregation in Chillian provided an incredible level of hospitality while we were there and made sure that nothing was lacking as much as possible in our “home away from home”. Meals were always incredible and I was especially impressed with eating watermelon and fresh fruit in January. Remember in the southern hemisphere our winter is their summer and vice versa. We enjoyed days of work under an incredible blue sky and warm evening walks with all the neighborhood kids. When our team finally came to saying goodbyes there were easily 400—500 people at the bus station from a congregation of about 200. We connected with so many neighborhood folks beyond the congregation we came to serve that many non-church attendees came to see us off. We experienced an incredible level of love and hospitality that truly humbled us all. I remember two instances of hospitality that really stood out for me; the first instance-- we were fed far more food that we could all eat and I remember asking myself where the extra food was going until one of our team members discovered the secret. He inadvertently stopped by our lodging place during the day and found a large number of children eating our leftovers. It turned out that what we had been leaving the hostesses had been passing on to the hungry kids from the barrio. The food we were getting was far more desirable than the usual Chillian fare. So quiet lesson to construction team…eat less, leave more. The other example came when I noticed that the furniture in our lodging place was very nice especially with the observable poverty all around us. When I asked one of the church members if this was typical of a chillian home and I will never forget his response, “oh no Stephen….the furniture in the place you are staying is the very best. Each of the families of our church brought their very best piece of furniture to the place you are staying so we could make you feel welcome. They had all brought their best for us to use…not their cast-offs, not their surplus, but their best. Their desire to bless us exceeded their concern for their “stuff” and they shared it willingly.
What a great witness to a bunch of gringos.
As we are welcoming our brothers and sisters into our homes and groups…lets give them our best.
Do you have stories you would like to share about what is happening in your group. Let us know about them and your attendance this week. Please hit reply type in your response then hit send.
Remember; YOU ARE APPRECIATED!!!!

Stephen Bishop---Interim Director of Life Groups