This month DaySpring released the third and final kit in the Women of The Bible series titled “Imperfect Hospitality.” You can grab your’s using the affiliate links throughout this post, thanks for supporting me and the ministry of PNW Bible Journaling. And great news you can still get it 25% off, along with everything else on the DaySpring site using code FAITH25. With that business taken care of I want to go a bit deeper here, share personally what I have been learning and explore “imperfect hospitality” together.
I love to invite, include, and connect people; but in a season of transition I have found myself “hosting” less in my home. Or at least feeling like I was not doing this thing that helps me feel alive and obedient as much as I would like to. “Imperfect hospitality” resonated with me and as I studied the passages in this kit and also completed a book by Shannan Martin called The Ministry of Ordinary Places I was inspired to look at hospitality a bit differently, try new things, and to honor the ways I am obeying God’s command to love others well and to “host” them as Jesus would.
Martin said in The Ministry of Ordinary Places, “we are better off when there is no time to sweat the details.” She also said, “Sometimes I offer hospitality as worship, more often it’s wrenched from my hands by a God who wants me near and knows I need a nudge.” I know that sometimes that nudge is a friend showing up unannounced, or asking to pop by “tomorrow” when you know you really have a pile of things to do or a huge mess of a house. Sometimes the nudge from the Lord is a need of a neighbor that is unexpectedly thrust into your life, or taking your kiddo’s friend to a from a weekly activity, or not having your own friends in your home as much because you are hosting your own family well or inviting in those who need the connection even more.
Martin quotes Mother Teresa saying “if you want to bring happiness to the whole world go home and love your family,” and then goes on to say herself, “But let us not forget this is the same mother Teresa who reminded us to draw a wider circle of who we considered family.” This is the kind of imperfect hospitality you will find from me.
I may be in my pajamas still, with day four hair but I’ll offer you a cup of coffee and a very sticky dining table to sit at.
It’s possible that while we chat I’ll attempt to put a dent in the clean laundry mountain that is always occupying our spots on the couch but I’ll be there to listen and share.
I guarantee the bathroom is a mess, I mean I do have four little boys right, or that you may have to push past our big teddy bear of a dog to get to the toilet. But you are welcome to stop in just for a bathroom break. Or a snack, although I may only have gogurts and pretzels to offer you… come. I welcome you.
In a season of listing, selling (two homes), moving into our new farmhouse, and then in settling in I have seen that the parties I love to throw are just one way I host. There are countless other ways I invite people in, make them feel at home, and obey God’s call on my life. When I asked other folks about what “imperfect hospitality” meant to them, one hostess responded,
Messy hospitality is what I call it. There might still be dishes in the sink, windows are dirty and have handprints all over them, the mirrors are probably nasty, and I probably need to sweep; but that’s my life and that’s what I can offer and you’re welcome to come be with me.
I can do that! I can open my home as is and my heart as is and invite you to join me. Whether it’s because we haven’t even quite settled into this home ourselves yet or because the dreams of “making it our own” feel endless and a long way off, or just simply because we live life here with our bustling family it will be imperfect hospitality. But as I learned by studying the cards in this kit:
- Genesis 24 – Rebekah
- Luke 10 – Mary
- 2 Kings 4 – The Shunammite woman
- 1 Kings 17 – The widow of Zarphath
Our imperfect offering, our hearts, our time, our willingness is what is perfect in His sight.
You can see a complete unboxing video of this kit here on the PNW Bible Journaling Instagram TV channel.
It’s the perfect time to grab the kits, shop for Easter, restock on Bible Journaling goodies or get some faith inspired gifts. Don’t forget to use FAITH25 to get 25% off your whole order include the already on sale items, find those here. (I love this party door banner SO MUCH, what a fun tradition to start and they are so easy to set up, I have a holiday one! And oh boy these jute bags!)
Now back to your regular programming. Here are some more details about this month’s kit and what is included. Plus an entry I did with the kit based off 2 Kings 4, including a link to the process video on IGTV!
Product details:
- 4 devotionals
- 1 washi tape
- 2 sheets of clear stickers
- 8 coordinating paper pieces
- 2 sheets of alpha stickers
- 1 4×6 clear stamp set
- 1 Women of the Bible: Imperfect Hospitality sticker
- 1 greeting card [from (in)courage]
- 1 DIY over-sized paperclip with ribbon
- 4 Free Bonus Printable Pages (delivered via email)
- 1 message from DaySpring
- Packaged in a box with moss green tissue paper and a sticker
Each month DaySpring has also included a digital file that provides a reusable resource to us. You own the digital files and can print and reprint them whenever you need or like. I have printed them on paper, cardstock, white sticker paper or even clear sticker paper to make them completely versatile. This month the other reusable resources included the stamps, the gorgeous, giant, gold paperclip. These supplies never go away!
In month one of the Women of the Bible series the “Better Together” kit included the digital file, a Faber Castell silver gelato, and the stamps and had dark purple letters with a leaf/fern themed washi. (Grab that kit here.) and in month two the “Friendship on Purpose” kit (grab it here) had mustard yellow alphabet stickers, included a navy stamp pad, digital file and the stamps plus the deep purple washi. Each kit had other paper pieces or tabs and devotionals the clear stickers, and DaySpring also gave us a beautiful greeting card to send to a friend each month, so you really get a big bang for your buck!
Watch the process for this entry here on the PNW Bible Journaling Instagram TV channel.
I included this quote from Shannan Martin and The Ministry of Ordinary Places in this entry as well, “We keep screwing things up, but the point was never perfection it was community. ” I kept it really simple with some scraped acrylic paint, black stamps, some stickers and paper pieces that came in the kit and a fun cluster of tabs and washi at the top.
Grab your kit 25% off here using code FAITH25, thanks for using my affiliate link!
Please forgive the mispronunciation of “Shunammite woman” and the hungry babe chiming in throughout. It is real life folks and a bit of “imperfect hospitality” as I invite you into my real life, real home, and real faith. After the video stopped I added a paper piece to my tab with a tiny attacher, date stamped the bottom, journaled my own thoughts, and inserted a stamp of a woman on white paper. Voila!
Outside resources used were minimal.
-adhesive (I used Tombow glue)
– black ink
– Tab punch
– black pen
– tiny attacher by Tim Holtz
– pink acrylic paint with a gift card to scrape it on
– washi from Kit 1 “Better Together” and kit 2 “Friendship on Purpose” by DaySpring
