Easy Ways to Host Guests for a Meal, Gentle & Generous Hospitality, part 1

Kindly note: As an Amazon Associate and Affiliate for other companies, I may earn a commission from qualifying purchases if you use the links provided. There is no additional cost to you if you use these links. Thanks so much for supporting my home business, Diligent Homemaker! 

I have heard almost all of the excuses. Which ones am I leaving out?

“My house is too small.”
“My house is too cluttered or dirty.”
“I am too tired.”
“I work full-time.”
“I don’t know how to cook.” (or don’t like to cook)
“My kids are young and don’t always behave.”
“My husband doesn’t help around the house.”
“It costs money to host meals for guests.”
“I don’t know what to talk about with guests.”
“My Mama and Daddy never had company so I have no idea how to do so.”
“What about picky eaters or folks with specific diets?”
“I just don’t like to be around people.”

Homemakers have shared with me through the years. They have earnest desires to invite friends and extended family into their homes, but they feel restricted. The home’s size or condition is to blame. Any culinary shortcomings are also possible issues. Nonetheless, there are ways around each of these excuses. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way,” the old-timers would remind us. Let’s tackle a few of these roadblocks here and visit others at a later time.

Don’t wait for perfection.

If we wait for everything to be perfect, we will never start a new habit. Decide to start and do it. Take the first step, the next steps will be easier.

Recently, we moved from Ohio back to our home state of Tennessee. Two months before making the move, I made up my mind that we would invite friends right away. I knew if I waited to “have company”, as we Southerners say, it would be months before that would happen. People need people and we couldn’t allow the moving chaos to be an excuse for avoiding showing hospitality. We wouldn’t wait until everything was perfect, or all the boxes were unpacked and the house was in order. I am so thankful for this decision as our first evening to host guests was an unforgettable one. With boxes all around, we cleared the table. We set out a self-service meal (suggestions below). We invited old friends. We knew they wanted to be with us more than they cared about the half-unpacked boxes. We all had a blast! It was a much needed break from the moving busyness, too! Watch this video to learn more. It explains our decision to invite folks over for a meal in the midst of boxes and unpacking chaos.

Purpose of Showing Hospitality

Why even invite folks into our homes? Wouldn’t it be easier, cheaper, less complicated to just keep to ourselves? What’s the point?

As Christians, we follow the example of Jesus and the early church. The Christ could have stayed right where He was in Heaven. He could have avoided living with sinful mankind. He chose not to avoid walking the earth. He sat at tables and even cooked fish for breakfast for his closest friends and followers. He didn’t have to do that for us humans. He risked discomfort and inconvenience, even experienced unfathomable pain for mankind. He did so out of the purest unselfish love.

We are here to walk this earth in community. When we recognize this, our attitudes turn toward building relationships. We focus on maintaining and strengthening these connections. The blessings of inviting folks into our homes abound for both the hosts and guests.

Keeping Memories

Write down the date, who is invited, menus and what others are bringing to the meal, if this applies. I also jot down the number of adults and children. These numbers help when planning amounts of food to provide. This idea is very helpful for keeping track of menus that work well. It also helps with menus that might not bear repeating. I also enjoy looking at my notebooks of guest meals or special family occasion menus to jog happy memories. Keeping a guest book is a habit my sister and I picked up from our mother. We each keep guest books like this one when hosting guests and special family events.

Meal Ideas for Hosting Company

• High-end grocery stores offer ready-to-heat meals. Take these home, heat as-is, or place in nicer serving containers. (I never condone lying. If a guest compliments the meal and asks for the recipe, never lie. There is no shame in sharing your source. The purpose of showing hospitality is to strengthen friendships, not have cooking competitions.)
• Visit the frozen food section of any grocery store. My family thinks Stoffers’ frozen Mac and Cheese is a great choice and I agree. It is perfectly fine to serve guests food that is not homemade.
• Visit the deli at the grocery store. Pick up a rotisserie chicken, or pre-shredded chicken, and some bagged salad. At home, debone the chicken and add to the bagged salad for a delicious meal. One of my daughter’s and my favorite options is the Asian salad. We add shredded rotisserie chicken, a few extra sliced almonds, black sesame seeds to the items that are included in the bag of salad contents. Do this for guests and perhaps have more than one salad option.
• Buy take-out. Game night with friends is nearly perfect with take-out pizza and your favorite beverages.
• Have guests bring a dish or item for the meal. My personal rule-of-thumb is that first-time guests to our home are not asked or expected to bring anything. When they ask, I light-heartedly tell them, “No, but thank-you for asking. You get a free pass this time but I’d be happy to let you bring something the next time.” (I have learned it is a regional practice for guests to ask what they can bring. In the American South, asking “what can I bring?” comes right after, “Yes, we’d love to come!” This isn’t as true outside of the South. You can be the one to start that habit where you live.)
• Host a build-your-own (BYO) meal. You choose to supply all of the ingredients or have guests each bring an item. One of our favorite BYO meals is what we call Mexican Dinner. Each guest adds the items he would like on his plate, building his own meal. This is a great choice for folks who suffer from pickiness or have dietary restrictions.
• Various types of food bars are great build-your-own meals. “Bars” just simply refers to setting the components out for guests to make their own plates of food. Some of our tried-and-true favorite bars are Sandwich (check out this video to see a Sandwich Bar), Baked Potato, Salad, Soup, Doughnut, Pizza, Breakfast-for-Dinner, Pasta, Chili. I’d love to hear your suggestions for bars in the comments below.
• Fondue is fun! Pick up a fondue set at a thrift store. Have some retro fun with a new group or your own set of retro friends.
• Don’t underestimate the value of a simple pot of beans, cast iron skillet cornbread, sliced garden tomatoes and sweet tea. A simple, comforting meal invites your guests “to come on in, make yourself at home and be cozy.”
• Discover real menus I have created and used through the years. You can find them in my first and most popular cookbook, From Katie’s Kitchen, Vol. One. One page is devoted to how to host a Doughnut Bar! This book has 205 tried-and-true recipes that my sons and husband asked me to put in print. These are their favorites and will be yours, too!

The Heritage Ways Diligent Homemaker’s Commitment

As Diligent Homemakers, we do the best we can with the resources we have at the time. These resources include our time, physical health and energy, money and possessions. We commit to using these God-given resources to the best of our abilities and give ourselves grace in the process.
Lazy hands make for poverty but diligent hands bring wealth.
Proverbs 10:4 of The Holy Bible, NIV

Count your blessings and know you are loved,
Mrs. Katie of Heritage Ways