Gift of Hospitality

I can confidently say that if hospitality is a gift, I do not have it. So rather than thinking of it as a gift, I think of it as a skill. Inviting people over to have supper, or tea, or hang out doesn't come naturally to me. Hosting people is scary. Feelings of insecurity pop up. I feel like I'm fumbling around. I'm not the best at initiating conversation and my kitchen skills are average at best. Inviting people into my space feels extremely vulnerable, yet I think it is so important.

Last year I made it a goal to have more people over, cook for people, etc. I think I was mostly successful. I had people stay the night 3 or 4 times and I cooked a few meals for people. Slowly I am learning to get out of my comfort zone by letting people into mine. Comfort zones (for introverts at least) are usually in isolation. It's more comfortable for me to read to a book than to go to church for example. But isolation is not what we are called to; we are called to live in community.

I hope one day I will regularly have people in my home. I hope that I can make people feel loved and welcome. I hope it becomes natural one day. Until then, I'll just keep practicing.