Hospitality…

This evening, Denise and I decided to head to the South end of Walton County. We weren’t exactly sure what the evening would entail. I had to pick up some dry-cleaning and we just wanted to spend some time near the water after shopping for a baby-shower gift in Panama City Beach at Target and getting our favorite Olive Oils and Vinegar at Emerald Coast Olive Oil Company. And, as always, we weren’t disappointed! Panama City Beach was filled with Harley Davidson Motorcycle folks revving their engines and enjoying the sun, sand, and gulf. While it was a bit crowded at Margaritaville, we did enjoy a late lunch and some people watching.

One of the benefits of being a “local” down on the coast is that we can escape from the tourists and find our usual spots for relaxation. We arrived at Bud & Alley’s at Seaside just in time to secure a table on the upper deck where I took the picture at the top of the blog. The hospitality began as I offered to take pictures for a number of tourist groups who wanted their pictures with our gorgeous gulf as a backdrop. They were thrilled that someone would offer to take the picture so that all members of the group could be in the picture. All I did was take their iPhone and snap some pictures. But I could tell that it meant a lot to them. It is a small way in which I offer hospitality to our guests on the beach.

Remembering another lesson in hospitality from our honeymoon trip to Ireland we were able to offer hospitality to two folks looking for a place to sit at Bud & Alley’s. When Denise and I were in Ireland, we noticed that when we were at local pubs if there was an empty seat at a table, the locals would offer the seat to visitors. We took advantage of the offers on a number of occasions and were blessed with both a place to sit and some incredible conversation with people we wouldn’t have otherwise met. There was a couple looking around on the top deck at Bud & Alley’s and I offered them a place at our table. We could tell that they weren’t exactly sure what to make of the offer. They talked to each other briefly and then accepted our offer. Respecting their privacy, we didn’t immediately engage them in conversation. However, before long we began talking with them. It was on their terms and not on ours.

Over the course of a couple of hours, we had an absolutely delightful conversation with our visitors. They hail from Long Island, New York and had been down here for three days and this was their last evening on the Gulf. They almost had decided to leave the restaurant and the lovely gulf view until we offered them a place at our table.

It is amazing to me how little it takes on our part to offer hospitality to strangers. In the case of tonight, it was taking pictures and offering a seat at the dinner table. In other cases it has been to simply reach out to a stranger and share space on a subway or bus. And in yet other cases as I have shared in previous blogs, it is has been to look into the face of a homeless or struggling person I have come into contact with. In every case, it has been through the process of putting faces to names (even though we may not always know the names, the fact that we look into the eyes of another makes the same sort of contact).

As I look at the increasingly fractured and polarized world around me, I often get frustrated and depressed. There is so much hatred, vitriol, and venom spewed at so many targets. What if we simply stopped, looked around, and saw each other as brothers and sisters? I have done that in places like Afghanistan, Abu Dhabi, Grenada, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan along with other places in Europe and our own country. What if we looked at each other and saw who we were? What if we looked past the labels (Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Arab, and Middle Easterner to name a few)? What if we saw each other as sisters and brothers? What if we saw each other as Children of God?

Funny how an evening on the beautiful Emerald Coast of Florida can make a Padre reflect on deeper meanings of life, eh? If you ask Denise, this is a very common occurrence. Not only is my calling a 24/7 sort of thing, I am always seeing evidence of God at work in the world. God works far more than on one hour of one day each week. And I see evidence of God’s calling and God’s work all around me. You can too if you just stop, look, and listen to quote the old safety briefings from Elementary School.

Dear reader, how can you be hospitable? How can you be a witness to the love and grace of God? You may be surprised at how easily this can happen. Just be who God has created you to be. Look at a stranger as a sister or brother you have not yet met. And see God’s image in the stranger across from you. You have no idea whose life might be transformed or blessed by that moment. It may even be your own life!