Over the weekend I hosted my workshop as I continue work on my project and my NPO. The problem I am working on is the lack of welcoming hospitality offered by Evangelical Christians to Somali Muslims. Thanks to Bebbington I have a better descriptor now for Evangelicals. I presented the group with a word picture and a question. I described having a lavish feast at the huge conference table we were sitting at. I helped them envision multiple courses of food all set out with extravagant display. As Evangelical Christians we were sitting on one side of the table and offering Somali Muslims to join us at the table for a feast. Yet, they are not coming to the table. We might have a beautiful feast set out but the Somalis in our city do not feel the hospitable welcome to come and join us at our table. My question is this: How might I encourage and equip Christians to offer welcoming hospitality so that Somalis might begin to sit down at the table?<\/p>\n
This week I read a book called Unreasonable Hospitality <\/em>by Will Guidara. Published in 2022, Guidara is best known for his restaurant called Eleven Madison Park, in New York City, which ultimately landed in the number one spot of top restaurants throughout the world. He claims that what helped distinguish their restaurant from all the other top tier restaurants was their unique focus on hospitality. He declares hospitality is “making other people feel seen.”[1]<\/a><\/p>\n Guidara\u2019s book is certainly not a book that will still be in print in thirty years (much less 300!), but he does offer plenty of great leadership advice with a focus on hospitality. His idea of unreasonable hospitality is something that will carry over long after the book fades from the shelves. He details acts that he and his staff would take such as buying sleds for a family who were seeing snow for the first time, or different gift bags he would send home with guests. With an eye for detail, he trained his staff to listen to the customer and treat that as family, serving them more than mere food but rather serving them an experience they will never forget.<\/p>\n Throughout the book he has plenty of good one-liners. Here are a few:<\/p>\n Service is black and white; hospitality is color.[2]<\/a><\/p>\n The Rule of 95\/5 where you manage 95 percent of your business down to the penny; spend the last 5 percent ‘foolishly.’[3]<\/a><\/p>\n Run toward what you want, as opposed to away from what you don’t want.[4]<\/a><\/p>\n You’re not always going to agree with everything you hear, but you’ve got to start by listening.[5]<\/a><\/p>\n The first time someone comes to you with an idea, listen closely, because how you handle it will dictate how they choose to contribute in the future.[6]<\/a><\/p>\n Hospitality is a dialogue, not a monologue.[7]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Far too many Evangelical Christians have narrowed down our view of hospitality. It has simply become a church team that greets people at our doors or the act of welcoming a bible study into our homes. Instead, Christian hospitality should be done for the stranger as well. Biblical hospitality includes welcoming the alien or the immigrant. Divisions caused by immigration rhetoric have highlighted this biblical misunderstanding in our communities. We have lost the art of hospitality. N.T. Wright highlighted the inward ethnic focus and interracial \u201ctensions especially when Christianity is aligned with ‘whiteness.'”[8]<\/a><\/p>\n A Pentecostal perspective on a reading of Luke and Acts highlights the role of hospitality as children of God. The author writes, “To serve and share the hospitality of God is therefore an act out of identity.”[9]<\/a> Our identity is that we are children of God. We have been given a place at his table because he has welcomed us with open arms. His table has unending courses of food. His food is extravagant and unreasonable. The more we eat, the more he can offer. So, there is no need for a scarcity mindset. Nor do we have reason to be selfish. Instead, we can offer up seats at the table to anyone and everyone as our Father is the benevolent host. This brings me back to my first question given to my workshop attendees. How might I encourage and equip Christians to offer welcoming hospitality so that Somalis might begin to sit down at the table?<\/p>\n ____________________________________________<\/p>\n [1]<\/a> Will Guidara, \u201cPlenary Session – Unreasonable Hospitality.\u201d GLS24. Aug. 2024.<\/p>\n [2]<\/a> Will Guidara, Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More than They Expect<\/em> (New York: Optimism Press, 2022), 4.<\/p>\n [3]<\/a> Guidara, 46.<\/p>\n [4]<\/a> Guidara, 54.<\/p>\n [5]<\/a> Guidara, 64.<\/p>\n [6]<\/a> Guidara, 116.<\/p>\n [7]<\/a> Guidara, 191.<\/p>\n