July 6, 2026

Business by the Book

I Peter 4:9  Use hospitality one to another without grudging.

The story is told of a very wealthy man who was having lunch with a potential business partner in a nice restaurant. It was a busy day in the restaurant with every table being filled with influential merchants. One of the waitresses was extremely busy and hurriedly attempted to fulfill the requests of all her patrons. She was carrying a large tray filled with appetizers for a certain table. As she passed by the table of the extremely affluent business tycoon she tripped and spilled a bowl of hot soup down the back of that important man.

The potential partner of this man thought within himself that this would be a perfect time to see how the first man would respond to difficulty. Would he berate the waitress, would he become enraged, would he demand restitution for the cleaning of his expensive suit, what would he do? The answer came quickly.

The rich man immediately stood up, turned to the waitress who was now kneeling down picking up the overturned dishes, stating her most sincere regrets and said to her: “I’m so sorry that this happened to you, how may I help you?”  The important man showed genuine concern and care for a waitress that made a simple mistake. The potential business partner decided on the spot that this was the type of man with which he wanted to enter into a partnership.

The prosperous man demonstrated hospitality. One of the definitions of hospitality is “generous to quests.”  He was generous to the waitress in that he gave her understanding, comfort, and service at a time when he himself was discomforted. He demonstrated that he cared for others more than he cared for himself. If he would treat a waitress that was no more than a server to him with hospitality, imagine how much more he would extend hospitality to a guest in his home or workplace.

The Apostle Peter may not have always demonstrated hospitality at the beginning of his story in the Bible, but over time he must have cultivated the wonderful gift of being hospitable. Thereby demonstrating that no matter how advanced a person is in life and business there is still room for improvement, especially in the arena of hospitality.

Dr. William Howe