Many of you have heard Terri (our founder) speak and tell the story of how beLydia came into existence. If not, here is the short version: Terri had a dream where she heard the words beLydia. She woke up with a “download from the Holy Spirit” who told her that we needed to be like Lydia from the book of Acts 16. Consequently, she was supposed to use hospitality to spread the Gospel and fight child sex trafficking.
Now more than ever we are called to be like Lydia and spread the Gospel. Granted, using Southern hospitality may not be possible right now because we are on lockdown however we can still use Biblical hospitality and share the Word.
We, as Christians, are in a unique position right now. For the most part, we are the ones who aren’t running around crying “The sky is falling!”
Why?
We have HOPE. We just need to spread it. What is hope? The expectation that good things will happen. Hope is trusting in God’s promises.
No doubt, this is a time that we will remember for the rest of our lives. With absolutely no real control over what will happen in our lives (which is actually true all the time) the good news is that we do have control over how we react.
Furthermore, we expect things like this will happen because the bible tells us so and we also know that it is going to get worse.
Regardless of our circumstances, we need to lift people up and show them the hope and peace that can only come from Jesus Christ. Ultimately, we need to ground ourselves in this truth:
God is not surprised by any of this.
Therefore, despite this being a scary time for everyone, remember that there is nothing about this that surprises the Lord. Nothing about this changes the Word of God! He has this. All we can do is what He instructed in Psalm 46:10:
“Be still and know that I am God.”
We have to remain in prayer and draw close to Him. It is our responsibility to shine the light of Christ and encourage those with fear to turn to God in this storm.
Now more than ever we take our God-given mandate very seriously. Instead of living in fear like unbelievers, we are going to use Biblical hospitality and welcome people into our kingdom home. To spread the Gospel of hope and be like Lydia.
Here are a few ways to show biblical hospitality to your neighbors, community and the world:
-If you’re on social media, share your hope, testimony, verses on God’s promises.
-Check on your neighbors. Pick up the phone or send them a text to make sure they are ok.
-Is there anyone that you can order groceries for or grab an extra roll of toilet paper and drop it off at their house?
-Pray that the Lord shows you people that may need prayer, like the people who are working at the grocery store.
Check out these resources on biblical hospitality:
How to Share the Gospel Through Biblical Hospitality
HOW TO PRACTICE HOSPITALITY WHEN YOU’RE BUSY AND EXHAUSTED
WHY GOD CARES ABOUT CHRISTIAN HOSPITALITY
WHAT IS BIBLICAL HOSPITALITY?
For the longer version of the beLydia story, go here.
How to Use Biblical Hospitality to Spread the Gospel
