Ways to Encourage #4 - Invite Someone Over

Happy New Year, everyone! I'm sure many of you are in the process of making new plans and new goals for this new year, or at least reminiscing of what the past year has entailed for you. Well,  here's an idea to add to your goals... make it a point to be an encouragement to others. There are many ways this can be done (I've already mentioned three of them in previous posts). This fourth suggestion is to invite someone over to your home.

Now, before you get your head shaking from left to right as you emphatically say, "No, not to MY house!" listen to what I have to say...

1.  Get the idea out of your head right now that makes you think you can't have anyone over unless your house is in perfect shape. My goodness, what is more important? The way your house looks, or fellowship with friends? Most people don't really care if you have unfolded laundry on the couch, unmade beds, or dishes in the sink. They just want to be thought of, and inviting them into your home is one big way you can show them you are thinking of them and want to get to know them better.

2.  There are different things you can do with the people you invite over. Most people love to eat, so you can ask them to come to lunch after church (slow cookers are wonderful for this type of thing), invite them over for an evening meal (prepared yourself, or ordered) or have a cookout where each family brings their own meat and a side dish. Another idea is to invite them over only for dessert but, by all means, don't think that inviting someone over means you must feed them! Fellowship and/or a board game is perfectly fine. Asking a friend over to chat over a cup of coffee (or even just a glass of water) is a great thing to do, too! Just be clear with them as to what they are being invited over for, so they will know what to expect. If you do invite them over for some sort of food, be sure to ask about allergies first.

WHO TO INVITE OVER: 

• Good friends
• Family
• People from church
• Co-workers
• Neighbors
• Those who have recently moved to town
• Other acquaintances you would like to know more about

There are people all around us needing love and encouragement. Just ask the Lord to show you who to reach out to, then open your eyes and look around.

Have fun with encouragement!