We watch our neighbors’ children a few days a week during the school year. It is a wonderful arrangement. My wife and I have always joked that when people come to visit, it is just the kick in the pants we need to clean the house. Yesterday evening, the basement got a thorough cleaning for the first time in weeks.
As we were preparing the house of their arrival as our guests this week, I thought to myself, “We’ll have to add the leaves in the table.” Our dining room table, a gift from my late grandparents, is large without the leaves; when the leaves are added, the table almost doubles in size.
The leaves, for me, became a metaphor for the hospitality we are called to offer to all people, in the name of Jesus. This simple act of literally widening our table, called me to re-examine how I offer hospitality to all guests in our home.
What are your “leaves”? How do you offer hospitality in your home and in your life? How is Jesus calling you to “add leaves”?