A Prayer for Hospitality
A Prayer for Hospitality
(For the Entire Season of Easter)
From the book Open Heart, Open Home
Given to Hospitality—A Prayer
Lord, thank you for having given Yourself in intimate,
inexplicable hospitality.
You have been the Host to all creation.
Without a dwelling, You have contained the
whole world and habited Yourself in the winds,
the corners, and the depths, inviting us to be
at home with You. Beneath the shadow of Your
wing You bid us hide, and in the depths of Your
Being You shelter and refuge us.
Without meat You have nourished us.
Without beverage You have refreshed us.
By Your very Word came sustenance.
On bread and water without price have we been fed.
You have been manna in the wilderness of our lives.
Without a table You have banqueted us,
inviting us, yea, to be married unto You.
Over our heads flies the banner of Your love.
We are entertained with the mysteries of faith,
the songs of the Spirit, holy laughter.
You have garmented us in festal righteousness.
As we wandered in wastelands,
You sought us before we called.
You extended eager welcome
though we had scarcely knocked.
You embraced us when we were filthy
and oppressed and undeserving.
You are the Samaritan who passes not by,
Who finds lodging for us in the warm inns by the way.
You bake fish over coals, waiting for us,
though we have forgotten to wait for ‘You.
With broken hands You break the loaf of blessing.
Those same wounds caress our leprous spirits.
You do not fear to openly accept the intimate worship
of our harlot hearts.
You are the Host of all mankind.
Lifted up, suffering, without breath,
You yet extend greeting to all the masses,
“Come unto me…
come…
come…”
You give us the mystery of Your presence in this supper of the ages, this remembrance of Your ultimate hospitality.
O Lord,
Make my hospitality as unto Yours.
Be forever my archetype of endeavor,
My firstfruit of harvested goodness:
Love for the battered, misused child,
Grace to bind running ulcers of flesh and soul,
Eagerness for the wealthy without servility,
And for the poor without superiority.
Through eternity You have been and will be utterly hospitable.
Help me,
poor, faltering, unfeeling me,
to be like You,
with breath-beat and soul-heart
poured out
emptied
opened.
Help me,
to be given to hospitality.
 Found these folk-art bunnies at a thrift shop.
Built the table settings around them.
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"O Lord,
Make my hospitality as unto Yours."
BOOK CORNER
 I’ve
been plunging into books about creating “Abundant Neighborhoods” (term
from the book by the same name) and having various conversations with
specialists. Showing up at once-a-month coffees with Ruben Pineda,
the mayor of our town, West Chicago, I am learning how local government
functions. My concern is creating “Abundant Communities.” Hospitality is a key to defeating social
isolation, creating thriving communities, including people who are
marginalized, then activating local citizens in intergenerational
enterprises. I’ll be pushing these titles in the next month, but
for now, I need to finish reading the used books about scriptural
hospitality online. The next step is to begin to involve my neighbors.
What else do I need to know before I begin designing invitations? Robert D. Putnam, Bowling Alone. Simon & Schuster, 2000.
John McKnight and Peter Block, The Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods. Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2010.
Charles H. Vogl, The Art of Community: Seven Principles for Belonging. Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2016.
James and Deborah Fallows, Our Towns: A 100,000-Mile Journey Into the Heart of America. Pantheon Books, 2018.
Bruce Katz and Jeremy Nowak, The New Localism: How Cities Can Thrive in the Age of Populism. Brookings Institution Press, 2017.
John Kretzmann and John McKnight, Building Communities From the Inside Out: A Path Toward Finding and Mobilizing a Community’s Assets. ACTA Publications, 1993.
Jim Diers, Neighbor Power: Building Community the Seattle Way. University of Washington Press, 2004.
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