I wrote a post called “Thy Neighbor” back in January of 2007. You would think I would have learned from my post and my lesson at the time. Once again it is so easy to be the model of perfection behind the keyboard but when it comes to application…not so much.
Last night we had another house showing. When we arrived back at the house, one of our neighbors was outside and said she spoke with the potential buyers. It turns out that they had some questions about the home which is directly behind ours (seen above). Particularly, they wanted to know “what was going on with THAT house”. The picture quality is poor, but the backyard of that house is in very bad shape. Sadly, it is a direct reflection of what happened to the family that used to live there. The weeds are waist high and the trampoline and home have long since been deserted.
Here’s the point…I’m not upset about their yard. I’m not upset about the condition of their home. I’m not even upset that a potential buyer might have changed their mind over what they saw. What bothered me last night and this morning is that we didn’t “love thy neighbor”. I don’t know their story (and don’t need to), but what I know of them was that they were in the midst of a very ugly divorce. I am troubled that we never got to know them. We never shared a cookout, invited them over, or swapped stories over our fences. We never “loved our neighbor”.
Would we have been able to save their marriage? We can’t, but Jesus can. Would we have been able to be accountability friends and somehow help pour into their relationship and lives? We don’t know but Jesus can. Would their home be restored to a beauty like their family could too because we loved on them? I don’t know but Jesus can.
Maybe that is what he meant when He said to “Love thy neighbor“….
“Love Them Like Jesus” by Casting Crowns
AARON CONRAD 