Welcoming

welcoming - How can I welcome others into my home and make it a place where they want to be?

As soon as Laban heard that his nephew Jacob had arrived, he ran out to meet him. He embraced and kissed him and brought him home.

Genesis 29:13

Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you.

Matthew 7:12

Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay. God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.

1 Peter 4:9-10

The LORD . . . blesses the home of the upright.

Proverbs 3:33

THE WELCOME MATS by our front doors are more than a symbol of entry; they are a transition from outside to inside, from stranger to friend. When people enter our homes, we should do all we can to make them feel welcome and wanted. We can greet them warmly and focus on their needs. Are they hungry or thirsty? Do they need a listening ear or a sympathetic heart? Maybe they’ve come for encouragement or friendship. Our decorating, menu, and level of tidiness are not as important as our presence with our guests. Good hospitality is a foretaste of the ultimate hospitality: God warmly welcoming us into his heavenly home. Your hospitality may be the way in which another person comes to understand and accept God’s invitation to join him in his eternal home—heaven.

Prayer Prompts

Lord, I pray for the people who will come into my home this week: . . .

Your Word reminds me how to love them when they arrive: . . .