In our lives, we encounter challenges that are bigger than an individual. And yet we sometimes blame ourselves for all the negative outcomes we see, for all of the bad things that happen in our presence. As we worship as a church in seeming decline, we wonder what it that can keep us going. In this story of Abraham and Sarah, the visitors who bring the fulfillment of prophecy are only in their presence because of hospitality. Hospitality allowed these heavenly visitors to sanctify Sarah's despair. How can we invest in the stranger, too?

Photo: Abraham en Sarah-Hempel/Spijkenisse via flickr , Roel Van Duersen, licensed under Creative Commons CC-BY 2.0