Practicing the Presence of God and Finding the Heart of Hospitality 

If I invite you into my home, I am a host.

Only when I also invite you into my heart do I become hospitable. If I care more about the smudge on the wall than the thing on your mind, I miss the point of “us.” If I braise the duck to perfection but am distracted by my phone, I am absent. People who are becoming wholly human in Christ do not see those we invite into our homes as supporting actors in the drama of our own lives. They are our life! The art of Christian hospitality goes far beyond mere entertainment and dining to our bellies’ content. The hospitality in the story of God always begins in the heart and then finds its way to the kitchen and finally to the table. It is about communicating to your guests that they truly belong—not just at your table but in this world, and most importantly, they belong to God.

One beautiful example of belonging first to God and then to others is found in the story and writings of Brother Lawrence. At age twenty-six, the great Brother Lawrence (1614–1691) of Hériménil, France, devoted his life to serving God at the Discalced Carmelite priory in Paris. The monastic life provided the time and space for him to “practice the presence of God,” for which the discipline would later be known. He spent his days serving his brothers through the humble tasks of cooking and repairing sandals. For most of us, this sounds like a dreary, burdensome, joyless life, yet Brother Lawrence had a reputation for being surprisingly cheery. His happiness was ever guarded through his diligent practice of remaining present to God even during even the most mundane tasks. He would pray through the day and not wait until sacred hours in worship to finally speak with God. Whether he found himself in the kitchen or receiving communion during mass, he knew that all of his life with God was sacred, not just certain moments. His discipline was to strive to remain in an ongoing conversation with God. After his death, his writings, teachings, and correspondence with others came to be collected and finally published in the now-famous book The Practice of the Presence of God.

Jesus said, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden. . . For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28, 30). This lighthearted monk took Jesus up on his offer and found himself quite content. The art of remaining faithfully present to God is precisely where hospitality toward others begins. To be truly present to others and serve them well, we must first ground ourselves in the unchanging reality that God is always present with us. Cooking has taught me more about faithful presence than anything else. This is because cooking something well requires our attention. Yes, the phone can ring, a child can ask for help, the dog may need to be let out, but the reality is that you can’t stay gone for long. You must show up! Again, a life well lived is a life that is truly present to God, self, and others.

Christian hospitality is about practicing the presence of God with others in your home. The world out there can be cold, dark, sharp, and entirely indifferent to the things that keep us up at night. Our souls ache, our minds race, and our hearts break as we are assailed by plagues of time, sudden traumas, or plain monotony. The hospitality of God is the reprieve every human being longs for, whether we know it or not, and it is often best felt through the lives of those willing to love, serve, and listen. Though invaluable, the comforts of food, drink, and conversation around the table are short-lived. Therefore, Paul instructs us to make “the best use of the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:16).

Time is ticking by ever so quickly. As we come together, we can’t afford to pass the time the way we thoughtlessly take out the trash or doom scroll on our phones. We must make it a point to really show up.

Listen to or watch our interview with Alex Early on SBE here!

Dr. Alex Early is an author, pastor, and theology professor who loves to cook! Alex consistently says that “all of his wealth is in his relationships” and therefore the church, kitchen, and dining table all come together toward that end. He lives with his wife, Jana, and their two children in Seattle, Washington.