Everbody’s Welcome In The House (Guest Post)

Today’s guest post is by Angela Hagebusch. She writes regularly on her blog.

Everybody’s Welcome In The House…

Growing up, I have fond memories of my home always filled with people. My parents loved entertaining. We had a swimming pool and a pool table, air hockey, a putting green, a hot tub and a basketball hoop and they all got used a lot–by lots of different people.

My friends were always welcome at our home, and they enjoyed being there. My mom was good at keeping the snacks around and I heard on more than one occasion that I had really cool parents.

Families from the church were always being invited over to swim during the 100° summers in So Cal.

And countless BBQ’s were held in our backyard.

My parents hosted a small group in our home for nearly ten years and many of those in the group became like family themselves.

Even when my older brother was struggling with drug abuse, my parents would invite his druggie friends over for dinner because, the way they saw it, if they could make a positive impact it could eventually lead to a dramatic change.

There was an old wooden handmade sign with a painted sunflower that sat in the flowerbed in front of my house -

It read: Friends Welcome Here

And it was absolutely the truth.

Our door was always open and you were always welcome.

Yes my parents loved entertaining—but more importantly, they understood the value of building community.

Young and old, Christian and non-Christian, old friend, new friend, druggie, teammate, band member and co-worker—they were all invited and welcome and cared for.

That’s what community is all about.

Letting others in, including them, and making sure they’re taken care of.

“Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God.” (1 John 4.7)

With my dad’s life altering accident and the death of my mom coming much sooner than any could have imagined, those friends that had been made, the relationships that had been built were all there for us in return. They made sure we were taken care of.

Because that’s what community does.

Today I strive to follow my parent’s example.

They taught me the value of building community with everyone, no matter how different they may be. I plan to model the same for my kids.

So although I don’t yet have a wooden handmade sign with a painted sunflower that reads: Friends Welcome Here.

Let me just tell you—you are.