A Christian View of HospitalityExpecting Surprises by Michele Hershberger |
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"This book is about a journey into hospitality. Like the stranger who comes to your door, some of these ideas will be new and different. Some of them will seem scary at first, maybe even hostile. Let them come in and sit awhile, as your guests. Expect surprises."
--Michele Hershberger
What does it mean for Christians to be hospitable? How, in this age of pressing deadlines and busy schedules, can we keep from sighing with the heaviness of one more Christian duty? Hospitality is often seen as a bland practice of politeness or an invitation to be harmed by a stranger. Biblical hospitality is different. God’s call to love the stranger is neither boring nor dangerous. Instead, it is an invitation to experience God in a new way. Not in a way that depletes our energy, but always in a way where two become three, as God joins us at the table.People usually don’t expect surprises. Yet biblical hospitality, the call to love the stranger, guarantees that a surprise is just around the corner. The guest becomes the host. Givers receive more than they give. God is seen in the most unlikely people. In the process, we become guests of the most gracious Host of all."In Hershberger’s hands, hospitality becomes a ministry of daily life, a means of mission, an ongoing act of discipleship that can change your corner of the world."
--Wally Kroeker, Editor, The Marketplace, Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA)
About the Author
Michele Hershberger, Goshen, Indiana, is a project associate of The Giving Project, a stewardship education effort among Mennonite churches. She has served in a variety of church settings as pastor, teacher, playwright, and speaker in youth as well as adult ministries.