Love your Neighbor
After months of the house next door being vacant, we finally got new neighbors. Only… except… well, to be honest it has been quite a struggle adjusting to them. They brought a lot of clutter with a boat, construction trailer, and multiple trucks and cars that block the sidewalk. They have many friends/co-workers who spend much of their time on the back deck while they smoke, which we smell in our back yard. Oh, and they love saying the F-word, which we have heard a lot. To make matters worse, their 2nd story deck overlooks our back patio and now “not so private” hot tub.
After months of irritation, we decided to at least build a short, but high, privacy fence on the side of the patio which all of our friends agreed was a good idea. Only I’m not so sure about the message it sends. I like building bridges, not walls. I like building connection, not separation.
The Bible tells us in Matthew 22:39 that as Christians, we are to “Love our Neighbors” and when Jesus was asked, “Who is my neighbor?” He told the story in Luke 10 of the “Good Samaritan”. Two words the Jews of Jesus’ day would never put together. They would walk for hours to go around the region of Samaria. The Samaritans were the “outcasts”. They didn’t follow the religious rules good enough. They intermarried with sinful gentiles and a good Jewish person would never associate with them. Yet in John 4, Jesus intentionally went into Samaria and met with the “Woman at the Well”. Who was herself, thought to be an outcast of her community… an outcast of the outcasts.
Clearly when Jesus said, “Love your neighbor”, He was referring to anyone and everyone, even those who we might not normally associate with, people who act and talk differently than we do. To love your neighbor does not mean to just tolerate them, but to talk with them, help them, connect with them and ultimately, as much as possible, to make friends with them.
My son, who is 24 and still loves to challenge his parents, wants updates on how we are doing at making friends with our neighbors. He thinks that we should be “buddy-buddy”. I tell him, “We are doing good, making conversation, being friendly.” Things have settled down on my neighbor’s deck, and he even came over and gave me advise on how to build my “Wall.” Just yesterday, they were out front and their dog greeted me as I got out of my truck. It was yet another opportunity for connection. God has a way of bringing people together if we are available. How good of friends we become, only time will tell.
Who is the “neighbor” in your life that God wants you love, to connect with, and befriend? It might be someone that you don’t expect, someone who lives differently than you do. God can use you if you are available.
Love your Neighbor… especially those who live just 10 feet away.
Let’s Pray, “Heavenly Father, help us to love people as You love people, to stand in the gap so if people can see Your love in us, they might ultimately see Your love for them and come to place of having a relationship with You. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.”
Blessings,
Pastor Vern