Hospitality Beyond Our Homes: The Ministry of a Meal Train

There are some seasons of life when a casserole means far more than just dinner.

After the birth of our second baby, our family was blessed by dear friends bringing us yummy meals after we came home from the hospital. Our small group started a meal train, and while I certainly appreciated not having to think about what we were going to eat for dinner, what stayed with me was something much deeper. Those meals reminded me that we were not alone. Someone had thought about us. Someone had made room in their day to serve our family. Someone had looked at our season of life and thought, How can I help carry this? That is hospitality.

And I think sometimes we make hospitality much more complicated than God intended it to be. We picture beautifully set tables, candles glowing, a perfectly tidy house, and guests gathered around the dining room table. And there is certainly something beautiful about making things pretty and welcoming people into our homes; I promise, I too love a fancy set tablescape! But think about Mary and Martha. When Jesus came to their home, Martha was busy making sure everything was just right, while Mary sat at Jesus' feet and listened to Him. Martha wasn't wrong for wanting to serve her guest well, but Jesus gently reminded her that she was worried and distracted by many things, while Mary had chosen what was better. There is a beautiful reminder for us in that story: hospitality isn't about doing everything perfectly or making sure every detail is just right. It's about being present, loving people well, and remembering who we are ultimately welcoming into our homes. Biblical hospitality is not ultimately about how our homes look. It is about how we love people.

Hospitality is about seeing a need and choosing to respond. It is about using what God has given us: our homes, our kitchens, our time, our resources, our gifts, and our energy, to love and serve the people He has placed around us. And sometimes the most hospitable thing we can do is not invite someone into our home. Sometimes it is walking into theirs with a meal, a hot coffee, a helping hand, or a listening ear.

Hospitality Is a Biblical Calling

Hospitality is not simply a personality trait for women who enjoy cooking and entertaining. Scripture calls Christians to practice it. Romans 12:13 says,

“Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.”

I love how practical that is. Paul connects hospitality with caring for people who have needs.

We do not serve others in order to earn God's love or prove ourselves to Him. As Christians, we serve because we have already received the grace of God through Jesus Christ. Our good works are a response to what Christ has already done for us. Philippians 2 points us to Christ Himself. Jesus humbled Himself, took the form of a servant, and became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

That should change the way we think about serving. We don't serve because we need people to think we're good women. We don't serve because we want recognition. We serve because Christ first served us. Because we have received grace, we can extend grace. Because we have been loved, we can love. Because Christ humbled Himself for us, we can humble ourselves to serve others. Our service flows from the gospel, not toward it.

Hospitality Is More Than Opening Your Front Door

One of my favorite things about hospitality is that it doesn't have to stay inside our homes. There is absolutely a biblical beauty to opening our homes. We see believers gathering in homes throughout the New Testament. Acts 2:46 describes the early church as breaking bread in their homes and sharing meals with glad and generous hearts. Our homes can be places where people are welcomed, encouraged, fed, prayed with, and loved.

But what happens when someone doesn't have the capacity to come to our table? What if the new mom is exhausted & recovering from childbirth? What if someone is sick? What if a family has experienced a death? What if a family is walking through an unexpected surgery, a difficult diagnosis, or another family emergency? Sometimes hospitality means taking the table to them.

That's why I love meal trains so much. They are such a simple and practical way to live out biblical hospitality. A meal isn't going to fix someone's difficult circumstances. It isn't going to make postpartum exhaustion disappear, heal an illness, or undo a tragedy. But it can communicate something important: You don't have to carry everything today.

Bear One Another's Burdens

Galatians 6:2 tells us,

“Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

We may not be able to remove someone's burden, but we can help carry a small piece of it. That is one of the beautiful things about serving others. We get to step into someone else's season, even in a small way, and remind them that they are not walking through it alone.

We see this heart of service throughout Scripture. Jesus Himself consistently cared for people in tangible ways. He fed the hungry, welcomed the outcast, cared for the sick, and gave His time and attention to people who needed Him. As His followers, we are called to imitate Him.

When we bring dinner to a tired mother, we are loving and serving a sister in Christ. When we bring a meal to a family walking through sickness, we are caring for people God has placed in our lives. When we make dinner for someone who simply cannot manage one more thing, we are putting love into action. The meal may disappear in twenty minutes, but the love behind it will linger.

Hospitality Doesn't Have to Be Impressive

I think one of the biggest obstacles to hospitality is the idea that we have to do it perfectly. We think we need a Pinterest-worthy home. We need a fancy new recipe. We need a beautiful table. We need enough time. We need enough money. We need to have our lives together. But Scripture never tells us that hospitality has to be impressive. In Luke 14, Jesus teaches His disciples about inviting those who cannot repay them. He points them toward a kind of generosity that isn't motivated by what we might receive in return. That is a beautiful picture of Christian hospitality. We aren't serving because we expect something back. We are serving because we have an opportunity to love someone.

And that means a meal train doesn't have to be fancy. A rotisserie chicken and a bagged salad can be hospitality. The point isn't the meal. The point is loving someone well.

My Favorite Meal Train Meals

When I bring a meal to a family, I try to think about three things: Is it comforting? Is it nutritious? Is it yummy? Here are three of my favorite meals to bless others with (and wink wink...whole foods has an amazingggg selection of premade dinners you can grab & drop off if you're short on time!):

• Macaroni & meatballs

  This one is a labor of love! If I know I have some extra time to prep, I will make homemade meatballs & sauce! They simmer on the stove for a few hours (just like my grandma used to do growing up!), and this makes the most delicious & hearty meal! This meal is a favorite, especially for new parents, because it reheats and freezes really well! This would also be the perfect meal to double so they can pop an extra serving in their freezer for a future dinner! Send with a salad and bread!! Delish 100% of the time!

  Note: Yes, I use my grandma's recipe! But I also have purchased prepared meatballs from the grocery store (but grab them from the butcher; the frozen ones are never really as good!)

• Grilled chicken, Rice, & Veggies Marinate & grill chicken! Assemble an easy salad with lettuce, English cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, and I always include feta in a Ziploc baggie, just in case they don't like it! Include white rice; I like Basmati! I always send with a bag of pita bread and tubs of hummus, tzatziki, and whipped feta (Trader Joe's is my fav!) Note: grab an extra salad dressing next time you see BOGO at the grocery store! Put it in your pantry for when the opportunity arises to share a meal!

  
  

  

• "Bippibop Bowls" / Sandwiches

  This is going to be your new favorite! Marinate chicken or steak in Korean BBQ sauce! I cook the meat on the Blackstone, but on the stove works great, too! Prepare your go-to grain! I like to send with white rice and Thai wheat noodles (purchase these from Trader Joe's) along with hoagie rolls to make sandwiches! Then cut up/package the following (I know it seems like a lot, but the flavor combo this makes is out of this world):

  • Shredded carrots

  • Thinly sliced English cucumbers

  • White onion or pickled red onion

  • Radishes

  • Jalapeño

  • Pineapple (canned or fresh!)

  • Cilantro

  • Kimchi (I grab a new container from Trader Joe's! It's under $4, and it's easier than portioning it out from another container!)

    
    

    Note: We have a quick-service restaurant here in the Triangle called Bippibop, hence the name of the meal! I am obsessed with this place! I recreated them at home & they reheat AMAZINGLY! For anyone who mentions they like Asian cuisine, this is my go-to!

Don't Forget the Kids!

If the family has kiddos, I always like to include a few easy backup options because we all know kids can be picky! The last thing I want to do is bless Mom & Dad with dinner only to have them stare down a toddler who has decided that absolutely nothing on the plate is acceptable. One of my friends did this for my older son after our second was born & the look of JOY on his face when he was served sliced oranges and chicken nuggies "just for him" is something that I still think of when preparing dinners for others!

I like to throw in a simple protien, fresh cut fruit, cheese sticks, and applesauce. It doesn't have to be elaborate. You're simply giving a few options so they don't have to make another meal! That little bit of thoughtfulness can go a long way.

Make Cleanup Part of the Gift

Here's another little tip I have learned to appreciate: don't give someone a meal that creates more work for them. Grab a few disposable aluminum pans from the dollar store! And while you're at it, throw in paper plates, napkins, and disposable flatware. The gift of not having dishes to wash is huge. It may seem insignificant, but hospitality is often found in the details. When someone is recovering, caring for a newborn, or walking through a family emergency, those little things can make a big difference.

Look for the Need

One of the simplest prayers we can pray is, “Lord, open my eyes to the needs around me.”

Because sometimes we don't serve simply because we don't notice. We get busy. We get wrapped up in our own schedules. We assume someone else will help. But what if God has placed that person on your heart for a reason? What if that text you've been thinking about sending isn't an accident? What if that neighbor you've been meaning to check on needs encouragement? What if your small act of obedience is exactly what God intends to use?

Oh, and one more thing: you don't have to wait for a meal train to serve others.

I once heard someone say, “Don't give them the option to say no,” and I think there is so much wisdom in that. Not in a pushy way, but in a let me make this really easy for you kind of way! If you see a friend who has been home for four days with sick kiddos, don't just text: “Let me know if you need anything!” She won't. She's tired and overwhelmed. Instead, try something like, “When can I drop an iced latte at your door? Tomorrow morning or during naptime?” Give her options, but don't make her come up with the need herself. “I'm headed through the drive-thru after carpool; can I grab you a combo or maybe a milkshake?” Or, “I'm making spaghetti tonight. Can I leave a pan on your porch?”

Sometimes loving people well means being willing to inconvenience ourselves a little because we see someone else carrying a lot.

Maybe hospitality starts at home, but it doesn't have to end there. It can look like a beautifully set table, but it can also look like a casserole on someone's doorstep. It can look like inviting someone into your home, but it can also look like stepping outside your home to meet someone in a season when they need a little extra help.

It can be a meal. A coffee. A phone call. A prayer. A bag of groceries. A listening ear. A simple reminder that someone is loved and remembered.

That is the beauty of biblical hospitality.

It doesn't have to be complicated. It just has to be faithful.

So the next time you hear that a friend has had a baby, a neighbor is sick, or a family is walking through something difficult, don't overthink it. Make the dinner. Grab the disposable pan and paper plates. Say a prayer over the meal. And go.

Hospitality isn't always about inviting someone into your home. Sometimes it is about stepping out of your home to meet someone exactly where they are. It is a small way of saying, “You are not alone. We see you. We are praying for you. And we are here.” What a beautiful picture of the love of Christ that can be.

---

Wife & Mama - Making Everyday a Celebration!

ABOUT OUR GUEST BLOGGER

I'm Laura & I'm all about storytelling! Before babies, I worked as a product and graphic designer (which, if you had asked me then, I would have said was my dream job). Now, I am a stay-at-home mama to my two little boys = My serious dream job. For funsies, I take on a select few clients each year to work on beautiful design projects (eh hem...Feast Together!!) 

​

I am married to my best friend, James, and together we have the sweetest little boys; they are my whole world! We also have a German Shepherd pup, Samson. I love everything outdoors and can get lost in the aisles of Target; though... post-babies, drive-up is where it's at! Chatting over a cup of coffee is my love language (fun fact: I was a barista for almost five years!), and making new friends is one of my favorite things to do!

​

Above all else, I am a daughter of the King. I believe we were each designed by a perfect God with passions, gifts, and unique stories to tell. My heart is to encourage others in whatever they are passionate about and count it as a great JOY to be a part of the Feast Together team! 

 If you're interested in following along with Laura, you can find her on socials HERE!