The Power of Your Kitchen Table, with Rosaria Butterfield

Do you know the power of your kitchen table? Catch a vision for radically ordinary hospitality with our guest, Rosaria Butterfield. She inspires you to intentionally use your home to bless others and share the gospel. Robyn McKelvy also joins us with practical advice for serving the Lord and others through your hospitality.

Connect with Rosaria

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Episode Notes

Good news

Rosaria Butterfield on Revive Our Hearts

The Gospel Comes With a House Key from Rosaria Butterfield

Register for Revive ’21

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Introduction: Hospitality

Dannah Gresh: Good morning. What if I told you one of the most powerful tools to share the gospel has four legs, and it's already inside your home? I'm Dannah Gresh, welcome to Grounded. This is a videocast and podcast brought to you by Revive Our Hearts. 

Erin Davis: And I’m Erin Davis. Portia Collins is close by. We're here with our singular Monday morning mission, which is to give you an infusion of hope and perspective. And that means that we love to talk about the gospel, because Jesus is where we find that hope.

Dannah: It sure is. Erin Davis it’s not just where we find our hope, but also our perspective. 

Erin: That’s so true.

Dannah: And boy, do we need a dose of that? Now, don't shoot me, but it's been a while since we've talked about COVID, okay?

Erin: It has. We’re tired of talking about it. 

Dannah: I know, everyone's tired of it, everyone. But I feel like we need to revisit the pandemic just a little bit this morning. Because there's been a casualty in all of this that we really haven't talked about, Christian hospitality. Having people in our homes. It's one of the ways that we can share the hope and perspective of Jesus Christ. It's also one of the ways that we can encourage other believers, so we need to talk about this.

Erin: Yeah, we had some new friends over this weekend. We hadn't ever met them before. I am used to having a lot of people in my home. I can usually throw a pot of soup together pretty easily, which is what I did. But I felt super nervous. They moved to our area during the pandemic. They didn't know us; we didn't know them. I was really excited to meet them. But I still don't feel like I have my sea legs. Like, I don't know what the rules of engagement are. Would they want to stay outside? Would they want to come in? 

Dannah: Exactly.

Erin: Would they be okay if I gave him a big hug on meeting them? I just felt a little like, what are the rules now?

Dannah: Exactly, because everybody's rules are different. We all have these different tolerance levels. And honestly, some of them are that we have immunocompromised family members or friends that we are serving and ministering to. We might have aging loved ones. And other times there's just kind of a personality difference. Some people just approach things differently. I think it's really important as we open our homes and express hospitality, I think it's a kindness to take those differences into account, don't you think?

Erin: For sure, for sure. I don't think it's wise to pretend they're not there.

Dannah: Exactly.

Erin: Or pretend they don't matter. But they are a little bit difficult. Not a little bit. I'm going to say a lot bit difficult to navigate.

Dannah: One of the things I did this summer, we had a large gathering at our farm. We had it outside under this big beautiful tent right in the middle of the riding ring. 

Erin: You didn't invite me? 

Dannah: Erin Davis. You know you don't have to have an invitation just come. It’s a 15-hour drive.

Erin: I might make that 15-hour drive anytime you ask. 

Dannah: So, here's what I did. I prayed through it. I was having like, 100 people, and it's outside. That's one way I made them feel safer if they had that tolerance level. That was a little more on the conservative side. But here's the genius idea. I really think that it came from the Holy Spirit. I served the meal that night as individually boxed, wait for it . . . charcuterie boards. Each person had their own. 

Erin: I can't even say that word charcuterie. I say it wrong, but I love them. I love that idea.

Dannah: It was beautiful. I was like the hostess with the mostess. But I think we have to consider social patterns and comfort levels. They've changed, but every believer needs to, where possible, pull out the table claws and find creative ways to express hospitality. Because, you know, I'm always about the research. It's telling us that half of the people in the United States are saying the pandemic has really negatively impacted our relationships. And the same number of people, about half, are worried about losing touch with people that they love and care about deeply.

Erin: Yeah, I actually think that's a bad survey because I think 100% of us have said, “This is impacting my relationships in ways I don't like.” Probably 100% of us are saying, we feel like maybe it's gonna cause long-term impact on our relationships. I'm worried about it. So, I'm at least in that 50%. Those questions are all still swirling about vaccines and masks and what the regulations are, and it can make us hesitant to reach out. But we believe in the power of our kitchen tables now, not just in the kitchen table itself. 

Dannah: Yeah, that’s the four-legged thing I was talking about.

Erin: They might have thought you were talking about four-legged dogs or something, knowing you. But it's not the powers not in the table itself. But it's intentionally using our homes to bless others. I would say, as I look at Scripture and see such a clear call for God's people to be hospitable, it is actually during the times of great upheaval and turmoil that can be such a powerful weapon when we're struggling like we are right now.

Dannah: Exactly. We've got just the guest to help us discern how to practice biblical hospitality during this very unusual time in history. She's a woman who I just feel like she has incredible insight and biblical wisdom. I'm so excited, Rosaria Butterfield, the author of The Gospel Comes with a House Key: Practicing Radically Ordinary Hospitality in a Post-Christian World. She is with us today. I cannot wait to spend a few minutes gleaning from her wisdom.

Erin: I know. I really do look forward to Grounded every Monday, that is true. But I've been especially eager for this episode, because I know, we're just gonna walk away with gold nuggets in our pockets from Rosaria. So, you might have heard that word hospitality or known what our theme was this morning. And you might already be thinking of all the reasons why you can't practice hospitality. Maybe you still feel nervous like I did this weekend. Or maybe you weren't one of the ones who spent the lockdown redecorating your home. I wasn't. In fact, my three-year-old spent the lockdown peeling the wallpaper rather randomly in my dining room, and I haven't fixed it. But I don't want you to linger on all those reasons why you can't open your home.

Dannah: You know, hospitality doesn't have to be crazy hard either. Like to go out like Joanna Gaines. 

Erin: Right. Which is good, because I can't be like that.

Dannah: Which is a good thing, because during the pandemic, we had a leak in our roof right above our dining room table, and my drywall is falling off right now. 

Erin: Oh good. I’ve got hanging wallpaper, you’ve got hanging drywall. I love it. 

Dannah: Yeah, it's great. But Erin, do you remember? I don't know if you're gonna remember this. But years ago, you had me over, and your house is so cute. I know you're saying the peeling wallpaper, but you have an adorable decorated home. But your boys had also decorated that day with trucks and cars and swords. It was kind of crazy. You put the kids to bed and then you pop the bowl of popcorn. We sat at your table, and we had the most beautiful fellowship together. It is one of the fondest memories I have. And I might say, you make a mean bowl of popcorn. But that's all. It was you'd tuck your toys away, pop some popcorn, and we had fellowship. 

Erin: That’s all I had to give. I do remember that as I recall, we were in our jammies eating popcorn and talking about Jesus. It was a sweet time, the picture of what we're talking about this morning. I'm so glad you remember that moment too, Dannah. 

Hey, Robyn McKelvy is back with us this morning as well. She always has such wise, practical advice. I would really consider Robyn McKelvy an expert in this area of using your kitchen table to bless others. She's going to give us some ideas this morning, if you're feeling short on ideas. It really can be as simple as a bowl of popcorn shared in your living room. So, we want you to catch that vision for how your hospitality in these days can make a difference. But before we hear from Rosaria, before we hear from Robyn, we need some good news from the host that always brightens our Monday with her smile. Portia, Good morning. 

Good News: Showing Hospitality in Fostering Children

Portia Collins: Good morning, friend. So, quick quiz. Which state is known as the hospitality state?

Erin: I didn't know this before you said that. But I'm gonna guess it's your state of Mississippi? Is that right?

Portia: It is. Yeah it is. So super excited that I think today is hospitality. And today, as we consider how we can use our homes to give gospel hope. We want to celebrate George and Ruth Graham now, don't worry, those names should not ring any bells. They are just an ordinary couple living in Washington state.

Erin: Maybe after this good news story, Washington state will become hospitality state number two because they lead ordinary lives. This couple are extraordinary ambassadors of hope. And it's only because of Jesus' work in their lives. It's only because of Jesus's work in any of our lives. They've committed to a lifestyle of using their home as a haven for those who are in need.

Portia: Absolutely. After struggling with infertility, George and Ruth became foster parents for the very first time 36 years ago. And when that temporary placement ended, Ruth was crushed. She was devastated. But she felt like the Lord was telling her to take in the next child.

Erin: All right, they did take in the next child. And then they did that again. And then they did it again and again and again. And these were not easy situations. This couple started specializing in children who had endured sexual trauma, and now often results in physical and behavioral challenges, but they've never given up on a single foster child. They've never called Child Protective Services and said this child, their issues, are too severe, they can't handle it; we can't handle it. They keep those children, and they keep loving on those children as long as the placement lasts. And George once told a reporter recently, “God showed me a long time ago that children aren't disposable. We're all His children.” That is a heart of hospitality right there. 

Portia: Absolutely, absolutely. And you want to know one of their greatest tools? Their kitchen table. For nearly four decades, they've used their table to share Jesus with the vulnerable, the traumatized, the rejected, all of the children in their care. They've taken in each one of these children, this is an amazing thing, once they're old enough to decide to follow Jesus. That's exactly what they have done. And personally, I love George and Ruth, okay. 

Erin: I know. I want them to adopt me. I want to come to their kitchen. Hey, George and Ruth have fostered, get this, this is good news, 70 children. And they've adopted a baker's dozen. They've adopted 13 children in their 43 years of marriage.

Portia: Many of their children have gone into full-time Christian ministry,

Erin: They have, a really high percentage.

Portia: I think that’s amazing as well. And so, George and Ruth, we want to tell you guys you are Grounded heroes this week. You've been using your home and your lives to reach others. And that is good news. 

Erin: It really is.

Grounded Interview with Rosaria Butterfield 

Dannah: It really is. Grounded heroes, I've never heard you guys say that before when we did a good new segment, but I love it. And if anyone qualifies, it certainly is them. I'll tell you somebody else who's the hero in my heart. Her name is Rosaria Butterfield. Rosaria was an atheist and a radical lesbian feminist when a pastor and his wife invited her over for dinner—again and again and again and again. Through radically ordinary hospitality, she ended up meeting Jesus Christ through that dinner table conversation and love. 

So, it's no surprise that today she is a pastor's wife. Her home has an open door and a ready set table. If you've never heard her story, oh, my friend you are missing one of the richest testimonies in today's Christian family. I'm going to drop a link right now in the comments so that you can begin to meet her and explore her, but why not meet her right now? Here she is. Welcome Rosaria. We are so delighted to have you today with us on Grounded.

Rosaria Butterfield: Oh, thank you. I'm so glad to be here. Monday mornings are rough around here because we have a lot of people over on the Lord’s Day, so don't let that clean wall behind me indicate anything accurate at all about how this house is working right now. 

Dannah: Well, thank you for making us feel just normal. Well, Rosaria, I've been bingeing on you lately. I forgot that we were having you as a guest, and about three weeks ago I was driving to the headquarters of Revive Our Hearts. I thought, I'm just gonna see what speeches Rosario has given lately. I'm just so blessed by the fact that while the pandemic was changing the way we did hospitality, you never really stopped. Tell us a little bit about what that looks like.

Rosaria: Yeah, no, it's ratcheted up. I'll tell you what else. I have not yet been arrested in my apron. But it could happen. It might even happen this week. Who knows? Hospitality has always been the cornerstone of our ministry. 

But you know, my husband settled out as a church planter. So that in many ways is the cornerstone of our church life. And, obviously, when, when the pandemic hit, all of a sudden hospitality became in some ways a form of spiritual warfare. The very thing that had become very normal, very daily, all of a sudden, we were told to, to fear. 

And, you know, like Luther, we just don't believe that Christians fear the plague. And so, we proceeded. We proceeded like that had. Our house during the school year had lots of little stations for other people's children to do their school. I teach in a homeschool co-op, and we definitely increased in size. 

I mean, we were homeschooling before. It was really popular and cool to homeschool. So, we also have a church made up of a number of people who, like everybody in the world, are struggling with loneliness and brokenness and being separated. Being shut down was just really not an option. So we've been a little bit like the Hebrew midwives, just kind of chugging along here, doing what we need to do. I would say that. 

And this is what I believe, I think that one of the real challenges. You have a lot of medical opinions coming from a lot of different sources, is you just need to stay with the basics. It is not a sin to wear a mask; it is not a sin to not wear a mask. 

It is not a sin to get a vaccine; it is not a sin to not get a vaccine, for those reasons. The Butterfields are not prone to write a new Apostles’ Creed based on COVID-19. Because it's just not necessary. The Lord knew that this would happen. It may be unprecedented to us, but nothing was unprecedented to Him, and everything that He gives us He gives for His sovereign purposes. 

Are there lessons to be learned? Absolutely. But here's a lesson that we need to make sure that we're learning: God's lessons and not just fear-driven lessons. I would recommend that what you do is be yourself. Be the kind of hostess or host that you are; be a team with your family. It's very important that wives not disobey their husbands to practice hospitality when the husbands don't want to. That's not godly. Be a team. 

People will do things differently. If people are offended, you can have lots of opportunities to talk about that. I mean, I was just yesterday walking the dogs before getting ready for church. One of my neighbors, a gay male couple, stopped me and said, “Rosaria, we want to know why Christians are so hostile to vaccines.” We had a very good discussion. I said,’Well, guys, you know I was in the gay community in the 80s, and 90s, just like you. I kind of remember gay men being kind of hostile to some health recommendations that were made about the last pandemic.” And so, we had a good conversation about how people want freedom.

Dannah: Yeah.

Rosaria: And where do you get your directions on that? So, I would say be yourself.

Dannah: When you say you you're walking down the street and a gay couple asks you a question. It brings to mind this, that hospitality is one reason that we practice it: to win the lost. So, what kind of Scriptures have you turned to as you have been sensitive? We have less to fear because we have eternal life. When they face a pandemic, why wouldn't they be fearful? They don't have to have eternal life, and that's not even on their radar. What scriptures have you used? Or how do you tweak your hospitality and your open door? To be all things to all people as the Apostle Paul says.

Rosaria: Yeah, I'm not sure I'm terribly good at that. I'll explain that later. But the go-to verse for me for this whole year has been Hebrews 13:1–3: 

Let brotherly love continue. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels. Remember the prisoners as if chained with them—those who are mistreated—since you yourselves are in the body also.

That has been the really go-to verse, let brotherly love continue. Don't stop practicing fellowship and hospitality within the church. Don't stop. If people are uncomfortable, that's fine. But there are a lot of people who need to be there, there are a lot of people who need to risk—whatever we think we're risking to gather together. Don't forget that's the center. 

Don't forget to entertain strangers. Now, here's the thing about strangers: They do not fall from the sky. And especially if you are middle class, they definitely don't fall from the sky. You need to go find them. To that effort, we really benefited from the fact that we had been practicing open everyday hospitality in this neighborhood for years. And the reason is simply this: When we would invite our neighbors over, we were learning that many, many of our neighbors were afflicted with either abuse or addiction. And people who are in compromised relationships or are slaves to addiction, it might seem very friendly to invite them over, you know, the second Tuesday of the month. But quite frankly, they don't know if they're going to be sober or safe that day.

We discovered firepit Fridays. Every Friday you do the same thing. Every Thursday. And because of that, we actually got to know our neighbors. We got to know who the people were that were likely going to be in full on terror over this. And also, the people who were immunocompromised and were going to need some help. So that was really helpful. That became our database. So even though those weren't necessarily strangers. As we'd never met them before, they were strangers, and so far as we'd never really communed with them. But you know, this was our opportunity to say, “Look, what do you need? Here we are.” 

Dannah: Yeah.

Rosaria: And then prisoners . . . Our prisons were on lockdown; some still are. You know what that means? That means that people that were in general population, they all felt like they were pretty much in solitary confinement. There are enormously successful prison ministries going on. But you can't ignore the brothers and the sisters who are behind bars. And so that's where your children writing letters . . . Pastors, my husband, was still able to get into some of those places. So, you know, go.

Dannah: I hear you saying hospitality isn't always just our kitchen table. I hear you saying, deliver food to the immune compromised, deliver supplies to the immune compromised, maybe volunteer to be a part of the prison ministry in your local area. Those are also ways that we can practice hospitality that might make some of the people that are more fearful feel safer.

Rosaria: Yes, absolutely. What we also discovered in terms of our home-based hospitality is a lot of it really shifted to ministry to children. I don't want to underestimate what this whole COVID shutdown is like for children. It's almost like a DNA of hopelessness has been implanted into these children, especially these children who don't have the hope of the gospel. 

Part of what the hope of the gospel is not just you get to go to heaven. I mean, that's part of it. But it's about knowing that God's story is comprehensive and that there is no suffering that the Christian will experience that is not part of His overarching story, which is perfect. Now, you might not get to play the role you want, but you get the role that He wants. And submission to that is a very important thing. 

How easy it was to share the gospel with the children in our neighborhood and how easy it was to talk to our neighbors who are trying to work full-time at home while their children are home. Just say, “Well, look, come over.” 

Dannah: Open the door, let the kids come and open it up. Rosaria, you remind me of in the early days of the pandemic, when we really didn't know just how lethal or dangerous this was, and it was still just contained to Wuhan province in China. I was reading stories that the Church in China was going out to the streets. They had on their masks, and they were providing food, delivering food, providing cleaning supplies, providing masks that were so difficult to find. 

They were the first ones on the frontline of ground zero in this pandemic. 

I've got to say that the heart that you and your husband have brought opening your home to children to have schooling stations reminds me of that. I want to have that heart. But it's not always easy. It is like walking on a tightrope to be respectful of our government and our leaders and open our homes and share the gospel. So, I wonder, I feel like there's such authority and an anointing in your life for hospitality. Would you pray over us as sisters all across the globe, some in countries where things are blowing up? Some in countries where things are calmer right now. Would you pray over us that we would have the heart that is in the Butterfield home?

Rosaria: Well, I'm going to pray bigger than that. You don't want the heart that's in the Butterfield home, because that's still a pretty sinful heart. But I'll pray that we have the heart of the Lord Jesus, for the love and the care of all the people—both the people who know Him and the people who do not yet know Him. 

So as sisters, let's gather our hearts to pray. Our great God, our Heavenly Father, our sovereign King, I pray, Lord, that You would guard the hearts and the minds and the homes of every woman listening today. I pray, Lord, that You would give a special anointing and a special grace and that You would equip us all to see with the eyes of Jesus, the people around us, and to serve them in Your name. 

I pray, God, and I know, Lord, that we will disappoint people as we do this, because there are all kinds of rules going on that I don't even know about. Ten of them have been invented before I started this prayer. So, Lord, I just pray that all of the people we disappoint will be disappointed for Your glory. And that even that disappointment, would lead them to know the perfection of Christ, the holiness of God, and the loveliness of the Christian life. 

God, may we see a revival right from our kitchen tables. And Lord, may we look back on these days and smile and laugh. And remember the great joy of living courageously by faith, so strengthen our weak knees and our weak arms, and equip us, Lord to do Your work. We love You. We thank You, and we praise You. We pray this in the matchless name of our Lord Jesus Christ, amen.

Dannah: Amen. Thank you so much for being with us today, Rosaria. 

Rosaria: Thank you.

Dannah: You're gonna want to get a copy of The Gospel Comes with a House Key by Rosaria Butterfield. It is a fabulous read that reminds us that people experience the presence of Jesus when they gather at our table. Here to tell us a little bit more about that today with some practical tips is Robyn McKelvy. She's a regular on Grounded, and it's been a while since we've had her. But she's back today. Welcome Robyn. You are a rock star.

Grounded Guest Robyn McKelvy: Make Your Table a Place to Experience God

Robyn McKelvy: Thank you so much. And guess what Dannah? I don't know if I should share because it's all been said. I so marvel at the Lord that He already has everything that He gave to me to share with the ladies or whoever's listening. It's already been said; I feel like saying, “Amen. Let's go home. It's over.” But I'm gonna share this. 

Dannah: Hearing from Robyn's heart is always special. So, say it again, friend, because sometimes we need repetition.

Robyn: I’ve got repetition with show and tell. When I was growing up every Friday, my mom knew that she was going to have two or three young women from our church over. My mom was a licensed beautician. She could do a mean press and curl. So when it was hair Friday, mom would pull out her big pot. And this is my mom's big pot right here. She pulled out this big pot, and she would fill it with beans, and there was always cornbread to slop up the juice. Now, I missed out on so much, because I was embarrassed that my mom would cook beans and cornbread for these girls over and over and over again. I remember those girls even taking this pot and tilting it to the side to get some of the beans out of the bottom. They just wanted more. 

Then when I got married, my mom told me to get a set of fine China to set a beautiful table when I had guests over. So, I put this fine china right here on my wedding registry, desiring to follow in my mom's footsteps. I loved having guests, even in my single days. There was usually a meal and laughter, great conversations. And then we'd usually end up around the piano. But most everybody felt right at home in my home. And I love that. 

And then, most people say that death is the great equalizer. Ray and I have been married over 33 years, and we still believe our kitchen table is the great equalizer. All are welcomed—poor, rich, homeless, happy, sad, gay, straight, those who have met at the grocery store, those who know Christ, and those who don't know him yet, are always welcome—at our kitchen table. And some of the things that we've learned I want to share with you. 

I have five points that I want to share with you that we've learned over our years of showing hospitality. Number one, invitations are in short supply these days, fear causes us from extending invitations to come have a meal with us. But 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us God doesn't give us a spirit of fear. He gives us a spirit of power, love and a sound mind. And those are the things that people need. So, if one person you've invited can't come, invite another. The Lord knows who needs to be at your table. 

And then number two, people don't care what you serve. If you're not a cook, order pizza. If you don't have time to cook, pick up a meal from your local grocery store. People just want to come. 

And then number three fine china is overrated. I think that was like $70 a setback 33 years ago. But we find out paper plates work just as fine. With paper plates there is minimal cleanup. So grab yourself paper plates and keep them handy. 

And then number four invitations to your home is a way of showing the love of Christ. You get the opportunity to do that every time you invite somebody over, you get the opportunity to show the love of Christ. 

And then number five conversations around the table get easier the more you have them. They get easier for you to start a conversation, no matter who is sitting there. It's easier. 

And then this is the one that I just smile about. I asked Ray last night, what's one thing that I'm forgetting? And number six, he said, “Hospitality won't look the same for all, be yourself. Don't compare your hospitality and how you show it, or how others show it. Just be hospitable.”

Now, my favorite chapter in the Bible is Romans 12. I love that Romans 12:13 tells us this, “Contribute to the needs of the saints, practice (or show) hospitality.” 

There are so many ways to do this. Another way that during the pandemic that's gotten really big, even before meal train, there's take them a meal—a person who is ill, just had a baby, elderly, hospitalized, and many other elements. They are truly grateful when you show up with a meal for them or their family. 

For the person sitting around your table—and this is something that I hear over and over again—it's like a warm hug, given over and over and over and over again. Dannah can I send you a virtual hug from my table?

Dannah: Yes! Always! My grandbabies hug me on FaceTime, so I can hug you. 

Robyn: Thank you. I received that.

Dannah: Oh, Robyn, thank you for being with us this morning. You know, what I'm hearing is the Lord is wanting us to hear the message that we need to be ourselves when we are hospitable. Rosaria said it, and Robyn said it. Just do it the way that God designed you to do it. And if you're like my neighbor . . . I had a neighbor who actually was so full of gifting in hospitality that she grew grass in her Easter baskets every spring. I mean, I'm not that woman. I'm a lot more likely to be the woman who pops a bowl of popcorn or says, “Hey, I got some more stuff, you want to gather outside?” Be you. Practice hospitality the way God designed you to practice it. 

Closing: Revive ’21 Is Coming Up!

All right, before we say goodbye today, in just a moment I want to remind you, you still have time to register for Revive ’21. It's happening in Indianapolis just a few weeks—the second weekend of October. We are so excited to invite you to join us there in Indianapolis. I just can't wait to be together and worship the Lord. But we also have an online option if you can't join us in person, and the Grounded team will be hosting that online option. 

You're going to hear from speakers like Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth, Mary Kassian, and Chris Brooks. I'll be sharing from my heart. Actually, I'm sharing on Christian community and this hospitality. I'm going to drop a link so it's easy for you to register and learn more about that event. We so want our Grounded sisterhood from all around the world to be there, whether it's live or online. 

Portia: I've actually been messaging with some sisters on Facebook in the Monthly Partner group. I've been asking everybody, “Are you going to be there? Cuz I want to hug you or elbow bump or something.” Cuz you see all these faces in these, everybody over social media. But I am such a people person that I want to see folks eye to eye and hug them.

Dannah: Yeah, exactly.

Portia: I’m super excited. I hope you guys will be there. 

Dannah: Well, some of you are watching Grounded from your kitchen table right now. We know that place is not just a place to eat, but it's a place to learn. It's a place we can show the love of Christ to others. 

The comments are blowing up. I gotta read a couple to you because I was peeking at them. 

Susan wrote the coolest thing. She wrote,” I continue to practice outdoor hospitality whenever possible.” I love that Bob and I opened our firepit a lot during the beginning days of the pandemic. We still continue to use that for people who are still a little fearful. It's a great way to gather. She wrote, “We have three close family members who are physicians, one on the front lines in the emergency room, who are still fighting this battle every single time they go to work. It's terribly discouraging and unsettling and hasn't let up for them. Yesterday, we set up our projector on our back deck, cooked up some soup, and invited everybody to come watch church online with us.”

I love that practicing hospitality in a way that's safe for them. We’ve just got to keep it up. We've got to keep popping those bowls of popcorn; we've got to keep firing up the firepit. And when it's appropriate, inviting people into our homes to practice hospitality—not because we want them to have great soup, or s'mores or popcorn but because we want them to have Jesus, whether it's meeting Him for the first time or not. 

I love that passage in Scripture (I think it's in the book of Luke) where Jesus is with them. He's been teaching them, and they're at the table. When they're at the table they said, “Didn't our hearts burn within us?” As we gathered our tables, the presence of Christ in each of us as believers, we can experience that same thing. Our hearts can burn within us because of the presence of Jesus Christ.

Portia: Absolutely. I'm reminded of our good news story again, with George and Ruth and how they fostered 70 kids, and how their hospitality really changed life for so many. We're not all going to foster 70 kids, but we can use what we have to share Jesus with others. There really is power in your kitchen table. So, I want to ask you, “How will you use it this week?”

Dannah: Yep. We look forward to hearing about that next week. When you join us live, we want to hear in the comments how God has used your table this week. Let's wake up with hope together next week, on Grounded. 

The road to amaze right Yeah, okay. I love that passage in Scripture. I think it's in the book of Luke where Jesus is of course with them. He's been teaching them and they're at the table and when they're at the table they said didn't our hearts burn within us? As we gathered our tables, the presence of Christ in each of us as believers, we can experience that same thing. Our hearts can burn within us because of the presence of Jesus Christ.

Grounded is a podcast from Revive Our Hearts, calling women to freedom, fullness, and fruitfulness in Christ.

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