A lesson on Hospitality - with Samantha
Written by: Rebecca Holsapple

It was a beautiful Sunday morning and Samantha was sitting in the van waiting for her family to join her so they could leave for church. She was wearing her favorite dress of blue organza and her mom had helped her make her beautiful, long, brown hair into a fancy bun. 

 Samantha loved going to church! She had a great group of friends there that she had known as long as she could remember. Sunday School was one of the highlights of her week. Getting to see her friends and learn about Jesus, what could be better than that?!

Dad sat in the driver’s seat and Mom brought Juliette and Shiloh, her twin baby brother and sister to the back door and asked Samantha to help buckle them in.  Samantha loved her almost three year old siblings. She loved to help her parents take care of them and she was looking forward to the day she had a husband and children of her own.

Of course, at 11, that was still a ways away, but she loved when her mom gave her tips and tricks and showed her how to take care of children and their home.

The babies were buckled in and it was definitely time to go, otherwise Samantha would be late for Sunday school.

Dad put in a worship CD and mom started talking to Samantha, “Sweetie, I came up with a great idea last week, but I didn’t want to tell you about it until I was sure it was going to work out… I invited all the girls from your Sunday school class to a Tea Party at our house next Saturday, and you will get to be the hostess!”

If Samantha had not been buckled in she would have jumped up and hugged her mom then and there!  Her dark blue eyes shone brightly. “Wow!!! That will be SO much fun!!! Thank you so much, Mom!!! Will all the girls be able to come?  I really get to host?!? Do they already know about it? What are we going to serve? Oh wow! Mom! What a great surprise!!!”  Her mouth was going a mile a minute.

“Calm down, honey!” said her mom. “I know this is really exciting, and we will go over all the details this week. I will be our special project. The girls already know, I called your Sunday school teacher and she gave me a list of all the girls, even the new family that got in just this week.”

Samantha barely heard what her mom said, she was so excited. They pulled into the parking lot and Samantha ran to the entrance. It took all the self-control she could muster to slow her pace and walk to her Sunday school class.

Sister Patience welcomed her and asked her to take a seat, since they were about to begin the lesson.  Samantha smiled at her friends, she couldn’t wait to talk to them about the party, but it would have to wait until after church.

 The group was starting to sing Samantha’s favorite song: “Jesus Messiah”, when someone knocked at the door. Sister Patience opened the door and there stood a girl Samantha had never seen before. She had long black hair, piercing dark brown eyes and an olive complexion. He skirt was like a rainbow and she was wearing a puffy white shirt.  “Everybody, please welcome Layla! Her family just moved here from Mexico. “The whole class said welcome to Layla, but Samantha was always shy and unsure of herself around strangers so she didn’t say anything.

Samantha started getting worried about her Tea Party. Had her mom said something about someone new coming? How was she supposed to have someone over that she didn’t even know? She had to make sure mom didn’t invite Layla. It would be too uncomfortable, it would ruin the party!

Samantha tried to stop thinking about it and focus on the lesson. It was hard but she managed to hear what Sister Patience had to say as well as the message pastor Joe preached.  After they sang the last song she hurried to the lobby and went straight to her best friend Chloe. Chloe was always cheerful and she always looked happy with her bright blond, curly hair and her bright blue eyes. She was shorter than the rest of Samantha’s friends but she definitely had the biggest personality.

“Oh Samantha, I can’t wait to come to your house on Saturday!! My mom told me about it last night! We will have so much fun!!” Chloe was her bubbly self and always made Samantha feel special.

“I know! I can’t wait either!  It will be my first time being a hostess, I’m not sure what all I will be doing, and I can’t wait to find out!” 

Samantha looked around the lobby to see where the other girls were, she wanted to talk about the party some more. When she finally spotted them; they were all talking to the new girl, Layla.  “Come on, let’s go talk to everyone!” said Chloe.

 Samantha wanted to talk to the other girls, but she really didn’t want to talk to a stranger, so she told Chloe she had to go see if her mom needed help with the twins.

 Samantha’s mom was glad to see her and told her she did need help, Shiloh was ready for a nap and she asked her to go get him in the van. Samantha did just that and decided to stay there with him. After all, all her friends were busy talking to the new girl and she wasn’t sure how she felt about that.

On the way home, her mom could tell something was wrong. Samantha was being surprisingly quiet even during lunch, especially considering the exciting news she had gotten just that morning. She waited until after they had cleared the table and were doing the dishes together to broach the subject.

“What’s wrong sweetie? You seem upset about something. I thought you would be in a great mood all day since I told you about the Tea Party.”

“Oh mom, I am still excited about the Tea Party, I can’t wait! I just was wondering…. umm, well there was this new girl in Sunday school today…. and…well…. I was wondering….You didn’t invite her, did you?”

“I invited everybody on the list Sister Patience gave me and the new family from Mexico was on it. Did something happen that would make you not want her there? Was she mean to you?”

“No… nothing like that. I didn’t talk to her. I just….well… I just think it would ruin the party to have someone there that I don’t even know! It’s my first time being a hostess and I want to do it right. Strangers make me nervous… “

Samantha’s mom looked at her with love in her eyes. Samantha could tell her mom was thinking about what she was going to say next. Whenever that happened, Samantha knew she had said something her mom had not been expecting.

“Honey, let’s finish these dishes and then go ask your dad to have a little Bible Study with us. I know strangers are mentioned in the Bible and we can figure out what God wants us to do about them. What do you think?”

Samantha nodded; her dad always knew where to look in the Bible when they had questions. He would be able to help, and if she was lucky there wouldn’t be anything about them and mom could just call Layla’s mom and say that it wasn’t going to work out for Saturday. A girl could hope…

Dad was sitting in the living room, looking quite relaxed, on the verge of falling asleep when Samantha and her mom walked in. Kathleen and Shiloh were sitting on the floor playing. Kathleen was playing with her favorite doll and Shiloh had about 10 cars strewn on the floor and was making lots of “zoom zoom” noises. Mom filled him in on the situation and Dad smiled. He always loved looking in the Bible for answers.

“What do you think Sammy? Do you think God cares how we treat strangers? Or do you think they are just that, strangers…and we don’t need to worry about them?” asked dad as he picked up his Bible.

“I don’t know…. I’m kind of hoping I don’t need to worry about them…kind of hoping I don’t have to have Layla at my party… What does the Bible say?”

“Well, if you think about it for just a couple minutes, I am sure you can come up with one story you have heard several times, that tells us to be kind to strangers. Do you remember the story of the Good Samaritan? Even though he didn’t know the man lying on the road beaten and battered, he took him and bandaged his wounds and took him to a hotel and paid for his stay there until he was better. The man lying on the road was a complete stranger to the Samaritan, yet he helped him. Not only was he kind, he was generous and helpful. I think just this one story would be enough to tell us how to behave.”

“Now that you mention it, I should have known that… but dad, Layla isn’t hurt. If she was hurt I would help. I still don’t think I need to have her over… I wouldn’t be mean to her or anything, but do I have to be her hostess? I don’t know her….”

“I understand that honey, I don’t think you have a mean bone in your body, but it’s important to make strangers feel welcome. That’s what the Bible tells us in Leviticus. Remember the people of God were in Egypt treated like slaves, once they were delivered God told them they needed to treat strangers differently than the Egyptians treated them. In chapter 19 verse 32 he says:” But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt”. In your case, that would mean to treat Layla as one of the original group.”

Mom looked at Samantha and said: “Do you know why we are hosting the tea party? To fulfill a wonderful commandment God gave us. In Hebrews 13:2 it says: “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares”.

Samantha was quiet once again. Her mom and dad could see this was a lot of new information for her, but they trusted that she would understand and be willing to have Layla come to the Tea Party.

Samantha and her parents spent the rest of the evening discussing scriptures and enjoying each other’s company.  They played a board game and Samantha went to bed feeling at peace with having to make Layla feel welcome and treating her as one of her friends.

The week was spent getting ready for the Tea Party, Samantha and her mom prepared a menu together. Samantha knew all of her friends’ favorite foods and decided it would be a good idea to make them.

Chloe loved peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, while Addison preferred cucumber sandwiches, Renee enjoyed fruit salad, and Bridget thought chocolates were the best.

Samantha wondered what Layla’s favorite was. So she asked her mom to call Layla’s mom to find out. Her favorite was empanadas. Samantha had never heard of that dish before so researched how to make it. Now that she was committed, she really wanted Layla to feel welcomed.

Samantha’s mom taught her how to set a table properly and how to act as the hostess. Her mom told her it was important to always have a smile for her guests, to anticipate their needs, to make sure no one ran out of drinks or food. She also explained to her that is was her responsibility to think of different things the group could talk about to make sure the conversation kept going and there were no awkward silences.  Samantha and her mom also planned a few games to keep the girls entertained.

Friday evening Samantha and her mom made sure everything was ready for the big event. 

“Mom, I think this is looking really nice! I’m so excited about the party! I hope I’ll be a great hostess!”

“I wouldn’t worry about if I were you, honey!  We have put a lot of effort into this and you have thought of everything to make all the girls feel welcomed and comfortable. I’m really proud of the way you have especially made sure Layla will feel like she has always been part of the group. ”

“I just hope everybody has fun!”

“They will! Remember you are taking care of the guests all on your own tomorrow, but if you need me, I’ll be in the kitchen. Dad is taking Juliette and Shiloh to the park, so you won’t be disturbed. “

Samantha gave her mom a big hug, they prayed together, asking the Lord to bless every one of Samantha’s guests tomorrow, that she might be a blessing to them and that they could tell how much she cares for them. After the prayer, she went upstairs to get ready for bed.

Saturday morning, Samantha woke up bright and early. She could not sleep a minute longer, the sun was shining and her friends would be here in just a few hours. She put on her pink dress with small white flowers all over and brushed her hair. She also put the special hat that her mom had bought her just for today on. It was a beautiful white hat with pink flowers around the top. Samantha looked at herself in the mirror and practiced saying welcome to all the girls.

Samantha was so nervous and excited all at the same time, she barely ate breakfast. She brushed her teeth twice and touched everything up at least 10 times, Samantha so badly wanted everything to be perfect.

At 11, the doorbell rang, the girls were finally here!

Layla was the first to arrive. Samantha opened the door and welcomed her with a hug.

“Hola Layla! I’m Samantha. Welcome to my house!”

Layla smiled shyly and stepped inside.

“I’m sorry I didn’t introduce myself on Sunday,” said Samantha, “I can be a little shy around people I don’t know. I’m so glad you were able to come today! “

“Oh, it’s okay, Samantha. I’m shy around strangers too. I was so scared on Sunday to have to go to Sunday school with so many people I didn’t know. But, everyone made me feel so welcomed, I was able to relax and I really loved it. I was a little nervous about today too, but I can see I’m really going to have a lot of fun. ” said Layla with a smile.

Samantha put her arm around Layla‘s shoulder and led her into the dining room. “I’m so glad. You and I will be great friends! I can tell!”

The rest of the girls arrived a few minutes later and Samantha had the time of her life! They all had lots of laughs, and enjoyed all the goodies Samantha and her mom had prepared. They played a few games and drank lots of sweet tea.

When the party was over, Samantha went into the kitchen and gave her mom a big hug. “Thank you so much for thinking of this mom. It was wonderful! I loved being the hostess and having all the girls over!”

“I’m glad it went well sweetie! How was it with Layla?”

“Oh mom, I don’t know why I ever worried! She is one of the sweetest people I have ever met! She fit right in with all of us! I want to do this again soon, and maybe next time we can invite all the girls in the Sunday school class of 8 and 9 year olds. I don’t know a lot of them and it would be a good opportunity to show hospitality!”

“That’s a great idea!” said mom.

The End