You know from the moment you step in someone’s home whether or not you want to come back. From the greeting you receive to the smiles on the faces, when you experience true hospitality, you leave warmed to your soul. When you experience hospitality you want to come back and again and again. Hospitality is a great thing. In fact, it’s commanded in the Bible. Hebrews 13:1-2, “Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters. 2 Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it!”

Hospitality is even the main reason people decide if they want to go back to church or not. When the unchurched visit a church that is cold, aloof, or just inward focused, they don’t want to go back. They don’t feel welcome. It’s not because the church people made fun of them or physically assaulted them. They just didn’t feel welcomed. They weren’t shown hospitality.

We want to be a church that excels at hospitality. Not just because God commands it (although that would be enough). Not just because it brings people back (although that would be enough). But also because we want to be a church that’s in love with the unchurched. You can’t say you love someone and not show them hospitality. We want the unchurched who walks into our church for the very first time to know we believe they belong here. We’re excited to have them and we want to show it to them.

So thank you for volunteering. Every volunteer position on Sunday morning is team hospitality. From prepping communion to working in the nursery, you are all making church a place that the unchurched feel welcome in. Thank you for that. I pray that this Sunday, because of your warmth and enthusiasm, somebody makes the decision to come back to church again. And again. And again!