God at Work
“I will plant her for myself in the land; I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.’ I will say to those called ‘Not my people,’ ‘You are my people;’ and they will say, ‘You are my God.’”
Hosea 2:23, NIV
Some of you know my husband, Alex, and I just bought a new home. One of the things both of us were sure we wanted was space to host guests. Before we were married, we concluded it was a shared value; hospitality was important to us.
Then COVID happened, and we faced a combination of pregnancy and a premature infant while working to prevent community spread. So, for the last year, we have seen barely anyone.
After being out of practice for 18 months, the cost of having people in my space feels high. I have become accustomed to running my own schedule, having more time alone, putting in a load of laundry during the workday and not engaging with anyone at the office. I have forgotten what it is like to share the messy parts of my life this openly with those I love and have them share their messes with me.
Therefore, I am learning all over again what it is to love in this way: to put myself, my office, our home and my heart out to work in the service of God and others. I think of Hosea—a man told by God to take a prostitute as his wife. Throughout their marriage, she is unable to change her ways and has many children by other men. This dignified, respected teacher was embarrassed and ashamed of his bride, but continually loving, continuingly welcoming her home with all the mess she brought each time. What a thing to endure! Yet, in Hosea we have a living parable that shows us how God can love us with our adulterous hearts.
As the writer, Dorothy Day, says, “Love must be tried, and tested and proved. It must be tried as though by fire. And fire burns.”[i]
Loving others is a costly enterprise; offering hospitality means sometimes it will be exploited, sometimes it will be uncomfortable, sometimes it will be messy, and sometimes it may demand more than I think I can give. Yet, when I see people gathered around a messy table, people happily making themselves coffee in our kitchen or rocking our baby until she falls asleep, these feel like miracles in our busy and disconnected world. And I know God is indeed at work.
[i] Called to Community: the Life Jesus Wants for His People. 2016, Plough Publishing, page 323.
