When I saw the title of the book, I couldn’t help but laugh: Sorry, I’m Late, I Didn’t Want to Come: An Introvert’s Year of Living Dangerously. I can relate. Connecting with people doesn’t come easy for me. But I know that following Christ means being a part of a local church, and being a part of a local church means sometimes doing things that make you uncomfortable.
Hospitality isn’t easy, but God requires it. So let me encourage you to “live dangerously” by showing hospitality.
THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO
The New Testament makes a big deal of hospitality. Did you realize that? Paul includes hospitality in the list of the basics of the Christian life (Rom. 12:13; also 1 Peter 4:9). He says our elders or pastors must be characterized by it (1 Tim. 3:2), presumably so that they can set an example for the congregation. He says it should also characterize the older women in the church (1 Tim. 5:10), presumably for the same reason.
Hospitality is not the responsibility of extroverts but of every church member.
Biblical hospitality means far more than cake and coffee after the evening service. Showing hospitality calls for an open home, an open schedule, an
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