31 Days to Bless Your Home, and How to Have Fun Doing It Too!
Week 1: The Spirit of the Home: Creating an Atmosphere Where the Fruit of the Spirit Abounds
Day 3: The Spirit of Hospitality
Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 1 Peter 4:9-10 NIV
 |
| This epitomizes hospitality to me. More Face in Hole fun! |
My heart pounded, the bats in my stomach beat their wings in rhythm, and it suddenly got very hot in the room. “You want ME to host the evangelists? At MY house?”
I had never been very confident hosting anyone, and I certainly did not relish cooking a meal in front of my gourmet-master-of-a-mother-in-law! These are people my husband and I respect immensely, and the pressure to treat them to the nicest atmosphere and meal possible almost made me crumble into a helpless pile of insecurity. How would I pull this off?
I finally decided that I would have to just get over myself! It was time to kick that paralyzing spirit of perfectionism out to the curb! No more would I miss out on sweet fellowship with friends and family just because I was afraid it wasn’t going to be perfect!
Have you ever felt that way? Have you ever been afraid to host people in your home because you are insecure about your hosting abilities? That your home is not clean or nice enough? That your cooking is not gourmet enough? That you won’t know how to keep a conversation going or that people won’t have a good enough time? Have you ever felt that if everything is not going to be perfect than it is not good enough to even try? That is the enemy of perfectionism. It is time to open the door and escort it out of your home for good!
My advice is to relax and be yourself. You are who you are, and your home is what it is. Do the best with what you have. When you are relaxed, your guests will also be relaxed. The important thing is to have open doors and open arms that make people feel welcome. Learn all you can to improve your hostess skills, but meanwhile, just start practicing. Your confidence will improve just by doing it.
Back to the evangelists. Guess what; we survived! We even had a wonderful time! The lasagna didn’t have enough sauce, but everything else turned out all right. Most importantly, we talked and visited and enjoyed each other’s company.
I decided then that I would make an intentional effort from that point on to invite people into my home on a regular basis. I have even learned to enjoy it! The evangelists have been back a few times too. I also invited the ladies from my church to have Bible study at my house each week, and I’m not afraid to do it anymore! I am just me, and we have a wonderful time!
From now on, my doors are open, and my arms are open to welcome people into my home. Try it; practice it; relax; and enjoy it! It is not about perfection, but it is about fellowship. Don’t miss out!
During our fall challenge, I will share tried and true recipes with you every Friday. My latest find is an adaption from a Weight Watchers recipe.
Cinnamon Chicken with Apples and Cider
The fragrance alone is reason enough to love this recipe! I made this Tuesday evening, and the smell of cinnamon and apples filled my house, putting me in the most wonderful fall mood! It is so delicious too!
Ingredients:
· About 3 tablespoons of butter or margarine
· 1 Granny Smith apple
· 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
· 3 or 4 chicken breasts cut into 1 inch pieces (1 pound)
· ¼ – ½ teaspoon cinnamon
· ¼ – ½ teaspoon salt
· ¼ – ½ teaspoon pepper
· 1 medium onion sliced into rings
· ½ cup apple cider
· ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
· 2 cups cooked egg noodles
1. Core and slice the apple. Sauté apple in half of the butter until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cook about 3 minutes longer.
2. Remove apples from pan and place on a plate. Cook the onions in the same pan, covered, until soft, about 6-8 minutes. Stir occasionally.
3. Meanwhile, Sprinkle chicken with cinnamon, salt, and pepper.
4. Simmer chicken in half of the melted butter until browned, about 4-5 minutes. Set aside.
5. In the onion pan, when the onions are tender, stir in the cider and vinegar. Simmer for about two minutes.
6. Add chicken to the onion pan and continue cooking until liquid is reduced by about half and the chicken is cooked through, about 4-5 more minutes.
7. Return the apples to the pan, stir, and cook until heated, about 2 minutes.
8. Serve over hot, cooked egg noodles. Delicious!
9. I served mine with baked sweet potatoes and spicy green beans, and we had apple cider to drink.
Now, that ought to put you in the mood for fall! I hope you enjoy this! Let’s take a look at today’s challenge:
Week One Challenge: Read Galatians 5:22-23 and prayerfully reflect on ways you see the Fruit of the Spirit thriving in your home and areas in which God would lead your family to grow. Write in a journal throughout the week ideas that the Holy Spirit puts on your heart. Pray for each member of your family.
Today’s Challenge: Invite someone to your home for a meal, or at least for some coffee and hors d’oeuvres.
Join me tomorrow for “The Fun of Home” where I will share a cool activity to enjoy as a family, to build bonding, and help you to encourage the spirit of the home!
Please be sure to follow me at PearlsforLiving.net, and add your email to the right so that you will receive regular email updates. You will not want to miss one day of the fun!
Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Twitter too, for “daily wisdom from the Bible and life experiences to help us all build God-honoring lives, homes, and families.”
And, if you really want to help spread the word and bless your friends, be sure to “Like” and “Share!”
Thank you and God bless!
Shari Lewis
