The Value of Church Family

We've been busy with family visiting us for the last 2 months. After the birth of our second baby at the beginning of April, my mom and mother-in-law have now come for lovely visits with us. They are now back in the US, and we're missing having them around to help around the house and enjoy life together. It's nice to have them around to celebrate things like the birth of a baby, but living so far away makes it a challenge to have them around to help when we need it. Living abroad and serving the Lord outside our home country has its sacrifices.

My husband and I are discovering that's where our church family comes in. We've connected with our church family a lot in the last year. My husband and I lead a small group at our church. It's part of our job to grow the community in our little group, but it also benefits us since we don't have family near by. With the Lord's help, we're working to build the community in our small group by doing things like opening our home and reaching out to those who have a need.

A few weeks ago, my husband had a shed that needed staining. So we invited our life group to help us. And while we were at it we had a barbecue! It was great to spend time with those in our small group outside of our usual Sunday and Wednesday meetings. One great thing about our weekend barbecue was it enabled a family with small children to come who normally can't attend during the week!

Here are 3 things I've found to help build community where we live.

Serve each other. Help with redecorating, provide a meal, help them move house. When we had our baby in April, our friends provided us with meals so I didn't have to cook!

Worship together. This might go without saying in a small group, but it's important to come before the the throne of our God—together. The best place for this is in our Wednesday night meetings at our home.

Pray for one another. Again, it probably seems obvious, but it's so important. We pass around text messages among those in our small group and church when there's a need. It is great to see God move when the Body of Christ is united in prayer!

There are other ways to build community, but these are just a few that have helped us in the past year.

How do you build community where you live?

Real Life Hospitality

This week I had yet another cooking-for-company fiasco.  I put two whole chickens into a hot oven at 5:00 p.m., and then for some reason turned the oven OFF without noticing. At 6:00, just a half hour before my guests arrived, I opened the oven door to take a look and found two stone-cold, raw chickens!  Panic! My husband saved the day by wrestling and cutting them up for quicker cooking. Waiting for the meal to cook made for plenty of time to chat with our guests.

Even though I’m a cross-cultural worker in the Middle East, I spend most of my time going grocery shopping, cooking, taking kids to appointments, cooking, cleaning house, home schooling, and cooking. Sometimes I ask myself, where does ministry come in here? I don’t have much time for preparing Bible studies or planning outreach events...

What I can do is open  my home and invite people into the life we’re already living. Dinner is a daily event at our house, and  hospitality is probably my most significant ministry here.

Hospitality is About Being Flexible

Over the years I’ve learned to be flexible if people come late, if they come early, or if they bring extra friends along. On chicken fiasco night, I was happy when Bahar called at the last minute to ask if she and her husband could bring her brother Cem.  Bahar and I have been praying for years that Cem would come to the Lord. We had a lovely evening laughing and telling stories. At the end we pulled out the Bible, as we do most nights, to read and pray together.  I smiled when my kids prayed for Cem.

Hospitality is About Making Time

Lale is a young Christian who expressed to me several times that she wanted to get together, but I never made definite plans with her.  However, the third time she asked about visiting us, I decided that rather than waiting for a convenient time, I would MAKE time for Lale. So I rushed home one afternoon after a prayer meeting to start preparing a simple dinner. When she arrived, I invited her to the kitchen and we  talked while she helped me cook. Our family had a delightful time getting to know her, and after the kids went to bed, I worked up the courage to ask how her relationship with God was going. We spent a few minutes talking and praying about our daily time with God, and I sent her out the door with a hug.

I suspect that in the Middle East, simple hospitality speaks louder than a Bible study, but at the same time it can be overwhelming to invite people over. I like to remember the following real life hospitality tips.:

Relax

If you burn the food, laugh it off.  You don’t need to  impress anyone.

Let Your Guests Help

Don’t kill yourself trying to have everything ready on time. Invite guests to the kitchen and let them help you.

Keep It Simple

Have 2 to 4 easy recipes, default dishes you can cook for company anytime.

Serve a bar of chocolate broken into pieces with fruit and tea or coffee for a quick dessert.

What does hospitality look like in your home? What is your favorite tip for making entertaining easier?