Won't You be my Neighbor?

Who’s your neighbor? I haven’t seen the new Mister Rogers movie yet, but the idea of being a neighbor is interesting to me. However, Mister Rogers certainly didn’t originate the idea. In fact, since he was a Presbyterian minister, I’m pretty confident he got it directly from Jesus. But the idea of being a neighbor isn’t just about Jesus, it’s something that impacts us all.
And so, take a second to think about your neighbors. I mean the ones who live right next door or across the street. Do you know them? Most probably know a least who they are and something about them. Maybe they’re good friends. Maybe they’re even family. Now consider what makes them neighbors. Because they live close? How close? Is it houses you can see from your front deck? If you live outside of town, your neighbors might live miles away, right? So how close do we have to live to make us neighbors?
And that’s the question that was asked of Jesus, too. And he answered by telling the story we call the Good Samaritan in Luke 10. It’s the one where we see a Samaritan help his enemy that was in need. And at the end of the story, everyone knew that this enemy was a neighbor to the hurt man because of his mercy.
And so Jesus, it seems, defines neighbor less on geography and more on the heart. Being a neighbor is less about location and more about attitude. Less about where I live and more about what I do.
And I was reminded of this story when I was sitting with a group of men who were talking about how they can serve their community and what they could offer to it. And I came in late, so I didn’t get the whole discussion, but I couldn’t help agree with what I was hearing. They wanted to provide something that made this community better. They wanted to build something that potentially made the community richer. The wanted to create a space that allowed for the community to grow.
And though the story of the Good Samaritan is more about how we individually treat those around us, I also believe that we should come together and find ways to offer important elements to our community. And what I mean is rather than just one person or one church or one club deciding to serve our community in some way, why can’t more of us come together and serve our community more holistically?
And though I don’t have a clear answer to that question, I’d love to be a part of something like that. To gather together with others in this community and determine a need and find a way to fix that need through a combined effort. I’m beginning that journey in prayer. Will you join me? God bless.