Wide. Expansive. Open. Warm. Welcoming. Limitless in guest capacity.
That can be difficult to grasp, given our human limitations. Even the most hospitable people I know have their limits.
To be honest, hospitality is not my strong suit. If hospitality is a virtue that can be practiced and learned, I much rather opt out and lean into some easier spiritual discipline like—I don’t know—fasting or poverty. I’ll give up food and material goods so long as I can still be alone and undisturbed! My heart only has so much space for extra people being in the middle of my daily life.
Plus, there are logistics to consider.
Our home doesn’t have a real guest room. While we’re intentionally not very people, our calendar doesn’t have much to prepare for guests, and then perhaps even less time to spend with them. Our refrigerator and budget can only feed them so well. Our driveway is weird and long and has limited space for extra vehicles. And we have pets, so we wouldn’t want to trigger someone’s allergies. Plus, we’re trying to finish up Downton Abbey, and it just wouldn’t be kind to make a guest jump into the end of Season 5 without any context or backstory.
Clearly hospitality just isn’t for me. Right?
Hospitality is challenging. Hospitality is costly. Hospitality is an act of courage.
Which is precisely why it’s so very powerful and precious. And why—thank God!—it is an attribute of the Divine Heart that is visible in some people much more than it is in me.
