I have a comfortable average sized guest room with a large closet. It sits adjacent to the second bathroom. No one uses this bedroom unless I have a guest. Except for a dusting, it’s always ready for someone. I keep clean sheets on the bed and bath towels in the closet. There is minimal preparation needed would I get a call from someone wanting to spend the night, as I did this last week when a high school friend was passing through.
Miriam Huffman Rockness, Christian author and pastor’s wife, has quite a different story to tell about a particular host she encountered many years ago. She and a friend were assigned to this certain residence after their high school choir group had put on a concert – too far away to return home for the night. Miriam and her friend had no idea what to expect once they arrived at the host’s home, but she admits that any fantasies of grandeur were dashed when they stepped through the elderly woman’s doorway. She describes the place as shabby and crowded. The old lady was pleasant enough but even the hot chocolate she graciously served was not enough to take away the Canadian chill of the unheated apartment.
I can imagine these teenage girls may have felt put upon. They had after all, came into the community to share their talents, and in so doing, had given up their nice cozy homes and beds. All they were hoping for was a decent place to lodge for the night.
The choir members had all been instructed by their leaders that “service” did not end with the concert but extended into the homes of those that volunteered to house them. Miriam and her friend tried to suppress yawns as their host produced pictures of her geographically distant family and told stories of each one.
Finally, they were shown to their tiny room with a double bed, separated only by a curtain from the kitchen. Once the woman finished cleaning up the kitchen, the house became quiet. The girls assumed she had gone off to her room.
In the night, Miriam woke and needed to use the bathroom. She tried her best to feel her way through the pitch-black kitchen but stumbled into a large object. Once her eyes readjusted to the moonlight coming through the small window, she peered at the object. To her utter surprise it was the old lady, fully dressed and wrapped in a blanket – asleep in a straight chair.
I Peter 4:9 tell us to offer hospitality without grumbling. My idea of hospitality is so far removed from this woman’s in the story. What I have to offer are “extras” I seldom use, but this woman gave of herself and all that she owned to give someone else a bed for the night. I give a wee morsel compared to her. What an impressive reminder of how little I give and how much more I could be doing.
Until next time – keep on readin’ and I’ll keep on writin’.
(Miriam Huffman Rockness story taken from “Opening Windows” – a collection of stories from various authors.)