The Gospel Comes with a House Key
Just recently, I finished Rosaria Butterfield's new book called, "The Gospel Comes with a House Key: Practicing Radically Ordinary Hospitality in a Post-Christian World." I became aware of Rosaria through an interview on a podcast called Sheologians. Rosaria has an incredible story of how the Lord saved her, which I will leave you to discover and which she talks about in the book. "The Gospel Comes with a House Key" was a captivating read and I believe may be a contender for the best book of the year for me.
Rosaria paints a picture through detailed stories, biblical support, and simple instruction that what she calls "radically ordinary hospitality" is what is needed to make a major impact for the gospel. Butterfield says, "My prayer is that his book will help you let God use your home, apartment, dorm room, front yard, community gymnasium, or garden for the purpose of making strangers into neighbors and neighbors into family. Because that is the point--building the church and living like a family, the family of God" (House Key, Location 152, Kindle ed.).
My favorite thing about this book is that Rosaria puts flesh on what she's advocating. She is a byproduct of radically ordinary hospitality and her life is built around it. Because of this, she gives so many stories of what this looks like in day-to-day life, which is what I think a book advocating for such a lifestyle needs.
Many times, I read something from an author trying to encourage readers toward discipleship lifestyles or evangelism and I am left wanting real life stories or to see how it plays out in the real world. Rosaria gives many of these. Some will leave you laughing. One particular chapter left me in tears. Rosaria is an excellent storyteller.
I strongly recommend you pick up a copy of "The Gospel Comes with a House Key" and begin to put in to practice exactly what Rosaria said. We live in a world that's becoming more hostile to the gospel. One of the most disarming things we can do as Christians is to invite someone over for dinner.
Note: I was not paid to write this review or endorse this book. My opinions are my own of my own volition.
