May 20, 2024 - Good Morning! It's Monday, May 20.
Our pastor is preaching a sermon series through the mighty Twelfth Chapter of Romans. It is a powerhouse passage where the Apostle Paul lays out a blueprint for living the Christian life. Just like these Daily Devotions, you can read Romans 12 in about two minutes, and I encourage you to do that today.
But this morning, our focus, as our pastor's focus was yesterday, is on verse 13, where Paul gives a simple commandment - Practice Hospitality. It reminded me of a woman that I had the pleasure to know 40 years ago. I was a young minister, attending seminary, and working part time at a church in Dallas. She was a respected member of that church, a senior adult, a widow, and very wealthy. And she had a unique ministry . . . of hospitality.
Every couple of months, half a dozen times each year, she would host a dinner party at her palatial home. The 12-person guest list would be carefully chosen by her from the church roll. She would seat a brand-new believer next to a senior saint. She would place a young couple across from a bank president and his wife. At her dinner parties she would connect people who, otherwise, would have never been connected.
And so, in addition to providing her guests with an evening of fine dining, she was building up her church. She was using the blessings that God had given her to bless others. She was practicing hospitality. And she made a lasting impression on that young couple, me and my wife.
Hospitality doesn't have to involve throwing a dinner party. It happens when we take whatever God has given us - talents, experience, wisdom - and share it with another. Practice hospitality today. And read Romans 12!
Meet you back here tomorrow,
Bro. David
dmathis@fbccenter.org
