Hospitality Hints is a monthly feature on our blog with some helpful hints for being hospitable in everyday life. Our hints may involve inviting people over, but not always! Most of the time, they will be about having a posture of hospitality—welcoming others into our lives.
It’s October. We’re seeing pumpkins everywhere and the aisles of our stores are filling with brightly colored costumes, spooky decorations, and candy. Whether or not your family chooses to celebrate and participate in Halloween, the truth is that it is an opportunity to show hospitality. Every other day, we must make the effort to go to our neighbors to show them love and hospitality. On Halloween, they come right to our doors! And many times, they bring their entire family.
Here are a few ways to show hospitality to your trick-or-treaters:
- Engage in conversation. It can be easy to simply hand out candy without asking names and finding out a little more about the family. Keep in mind the kids are in a hurry—they’re trying to get as much candy as they can!—and don’t make conversation too long. Smile, though, and make sure your neighbors know you’re a friendly face.
- Give out information about your church. Print out some business cards with your church information—service times, address, website, etc. Perhaps put your name and number on the other side so neighbors will know who gave them the card.
- Give good candy! This is crucial. The goal of trick-or-treating is to get good candy. If you give out information about your church or any sort of inspirational toy or favor, also give candy. If you have the best candy in the neighborhood? Well, you’ll see far more people that night.
- Provide a party. Get a few of your neighbors or small group members together and make it a party. Rent a bounce house and provide hotdogs and cold/hot drinks (depending on the weather). Have plenty of chairs out for people to stop a minute and rest while their kids bounce and play.
- Participate in neighborhood and community activities. If your neighborhood already has a party or your church does something fun that night, don’t reinvent the wheel. Offer to help out. Go and join the fun! Leave invitations on the porch for any trick-or-treaters to join you.
Here’s a great article for a few more ways to build relationships with your neighbors on Halloween.
What other hints do you have for hospitality for trick-or-treaters?
