Service and Hospitality: John Chrysostom: You Are the Priest of Your Home

John Chrysostom urged ordinary Christians to see their households as sacred spaces of service. He taught: "Make your home a church. You are the priest of your own house. You are responsible not only for yourself but for your servants, your children, your wife." Chrysostom saw domestic service -- cooking, cleaning, caring for children and the elderly -- not as secular drudgery but as priestly ministry.

He preached: "Do not say 'I cannot help others, I am not a monk.' This is the devil's device, to persuade us that only monks need care for their neighbors." Chrysostom insistently democratized service, arguing that every Christian is called to serve in whatever sphere God has placed them.

Practical application: Choose one act of hidden service to perform in your household each day for a week -- making someone's bed, preparing a meal with extra care, cleaning without being asked. Perform each act as though serving Christ Himself. Chrysostom teaches that the most profound service often happens in the most ordinary settings.