We came to our church 4 years ago. We made a point of inviting people into our home for meals. I love to cook and it is a fun way to get to know people better. In our first house, there was very little room. Having guests over was a challenge, but we did manage. We moved into a second house after about 18 months and tried to entertain a litttle more. AC and heating was a bit of a challenge there, so it was also difficult. We finally got into the parsonage in January 2011. We began to have more families over. Week after week, one family and then another.
I would suppose that we have had more than 100 different people here for meals. I have a few dishes that I make without fail, other times I have expeimented. Hannah is a great cook also, so we cook together quite often. There was that time when we made fried chicken, cooked it too fast and it was all bloody on the inside. Our guests were very understanding as we collected their meat and mircrowaved it. Never again. We have used the crock pot and the oven...the stove and the mircrowave. We have had roasts, we have had biscuits. We have had rice and gravy, lots of Sister Schubert's rolls, and lots of banana pudding. We have had lots of fellowship and lots of sharing.
What does this have to do with our church, you ask? Well, our church grown. Nor directly related to the table or the meals, but sort of. The people that have been in our home for meals know us better than those that haven't been there. The relationship is a little deeper. The understanding of who we are is there. Preacher or not, Kyle is just a real guy. When you come here, you see that he drinks way too much sweet tea. You see that Hannah's bathroom isn't spotless. You see that our dogs live inside and think that you love them, even if you don't. You will see my collection of antique kitchen stuff and Kyle's cast iron. You will see Grandma's room and our back porch- complete with all of the laundry on it. You will know that the "Real, Relevant and Ready" motto that our church has is alive and well in our home. By having guests over to eat in our home, we are trying to lead by example. We want our church body to understand that investing in each other is totally worth it. We want our families to develop relationships that are deep and lasting.
I am looking forward to inviting more people into this home that God has provided us with. I know that each meal adds a new layer to the church body. I am thankful to be right where God has placed me and I don't mind doing the dishes!
Those lemons aren't real.
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True...semi-real then!!
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