Moms in the Bible–The Shunammite Woman

This post is from Moms Take Ten episode 52, “Moms in the Bible–The Shunammite Woman”, which you can listen to wherever you listen to podcasts or at https://sites.libsyn.com/403493/moms-in-the-bible-the-shunammite-woman

This month’s Mom in the Bible is another mama with no name. She is referred to as the Shunammite by Elisha, the prophet that she came to know, and who impacted her life greatly. The Shunammite’s story is found in 2 Kings. We are going to read beginning in chapter 4, verse 8.

“One day Elisha went on to Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to eat some food. So whenever he passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food. And she said to her husband, “Behold now, I know that this is a holy man of God who is continually passing our way. Let us make a small room on the roof with walls and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there.”

One day he came there, and he turned into the chamber and rested there. And he said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite.” When he had called her, she stood before him. And he said to him, “Say now to her, ‘See, you have taken all this trouble for us; what is to be done for you? Would you have a word spoken on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army?’” She answered, “I dwell among my own people.” And he said, “What then is to be done for her?” Gehazi answered, “Well, she has no son, and her husband is old.” He said, “Call her.” And when he had called her, she stood in the doorway. And he said, “At this season, about this time next year, you shall embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord, O man of God; do not lie to your servant.” But the woman conceived, and she bore a son about that time the following spring, as Elisha had said to her.”

I was watching a music video with my kids by Slugs and Bugs the other day. The song begins “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, anyone who has food should do the same.” The music video featured the African Children’s Choir. As the video played, I thought about my time in Tanzania. I remembered the teenage girl who gifted me a pair of underwear, a treasured possession in her village, the kids who sat and shared a single banana amongst all of them, the general culture of sharing and hospitality that everyone seemed to embody. The people of Tanzania displayed both to a level I had never seen before, yet many had little. Then I thought about American culture of taking but not giving, of keeping but not sharing, of independence rather than interdepence. How much we could learn from the people of Tanzania.

How much we could learn from the Shunammite woman. It does not say what drew her to Elisha the first time he passed through Shunem. Whatever it was, she opened her home to him so that he could eat. There are similar stories of such hospitality throughout the old testament—Abraham and Lot feeding the men who visited their area, Rebekah and Rachael providing water to the men at the well. So also, the Shunammite saw that Elisha was visiting and she made him welcome in her home. She provided a meal for him once, and then again. Each time Elisha journeyed through Shunem, he knew that he would be welcomed and cared for by her. Through these meals, she came to understand that he was a “holy man of God” and she decided to take her hospitality to a whole other level. She had an addition built onto her house so that he would not just be able to enjoy a meal with her, but could also have a place for rest, for privacy.

Hospitality was commended all throughout the Scriptures, culturally but also for godly living. In 1 Timothy 5, Paul is describing what is considered to be “good works” done by a widow and he includes being hospitable. In Titus 1, Paul presents the qualifications for elders and includes that they must be hospitable. The apostle Peter also calls all believers to hospitality in 1 Peter 4. He says, “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly since love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.”

I find it interesting that Peter makes a distinction between being hospitable and using the individual gifts that God has given us. The way that hospitality is talked about in our society, it seems as though some have the gift of it, and some don’t. I have even seen it on spiritual gift assessments. When we hear hospitable, we can quickly think of the person that hosts pinterest worthy parties or can cook five-star restaurant sort of dinners for the couples that they invite over. When we are lost in a sea of dirty dishes, piles of laundry, floors covered with toys, and children tumbling around, that type of hospitality feels completely unattainable, and frankly, exhausting.

The definition of hospitality, according to Oxford, is “the friendly and generous reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers.” Nothing in that definition specifies how we are to display that friendliness or generosity. We can each do so in our own unique way, according to our individual personality.

What I see in the Shunammite’s story, and in scripture, is that hospitality is as much a heart attitude as an action. That is why Peter included the condition “without grumbling” in his exhortation. God was the first to practice hospitality in the garden–he prepared a place, he made Adam and Eve welcome, he provided food and all they needed, he invited them into a relationship with him. God continues to demonstrate that hospitality by inviting and welcoming all who will listen into his kingdom. Even now, Christ is getting ready for when we will join him in the new place that he is preparing for us.

Hospitality is about seeing a need and meeting it. It is about seeing a way to bless someone else and taking it. It is about a willingness to open yourself to others and make them feel welcome and cared for. It is part of loving God and loving our neighbors. It is about showing Christ to those we come in contact with.

Hospitality says “I see you. I honor you with my attention, my offerings (however big or small), and my love. And I do this in the name of Jesus.”

We are not each called to build an addition to our home so that a stranger can live in it. I remember when I was in grad school and we didn’t have any kids, Jonathan and I decided that we would rent out the other bedroom of our small house in order to make a little bit of money. I couldn’t work much, if at all, between my internship and classes, so we felt it would be helpful financially. We quickly discovered that we were not very good at hosting someone in that way. I have wished many times over that I could go back and do that time differently, or not do it at all. That type of hosting was not for us. And yet, here we are, a Safe Families and foster family, opening our home to others in a completely different way that suits us much better.

I read somewhere, a long time ago, about scruffy hospitality–the kind of hospitality that is ok with paper plates, take out food, and dinner on the couch. Because it wasn’t about the plates or the food or the table, it was about the people. And as we talked about a couple weeks ago, we need other people in our lives, and Jesus wants us to be in other people’s lives as well.

We don’t have to prepare the five star meal. We don’t even have to be the ones to cook. There can be toys on the floor and some clutter on the counters. Or we invite people to get together in a space other than our home. All of us can practice being hospitable by having an attitude of kindness, warmth and welcome towards another person.

The Shunammite mother was rewarded for her hospitality many times over. She did not open her home for the reward, but it came nonetheless. As we obey God and love as he calls us to, we cannot help but reap the benefits of his good plan. So for our health, our hearts, our soul, let us learn to practice hospitality to those around us. Seek God today for how he wants to grow you in this area, to open your eyes to the tiny and big ways that he desires to use you to be a blessing to someone else.

Image from John Heseltine / Pam Masco / FreeBibleimages.org.