Thursday - Act On It - Neighbours to Acquaintances
Time and availability allows us to get acquainted with those near us. You may be discouraged, thinking I’m talking about adding things to your already busy schedule. Sometimes that’s necessary, but usually it’s just about making intentional choices to Love God, Love Neighbour in the midst of daily life.
Think about your downtime – how can downtime connect me with neighbours?
First, be interruptible. I used to have a retired neighbour who was often outside, and always up for a chat. His availability meant I could ask him for a ladder, to get the mail while we were away, etc. My availability to stop and chat meant he could ask me questions about the theology of the church he grew up attending.
You can also make other choices. Stick around on weekends instead of going away. Play in the front yard instead of the back. Putter around your garden, walk the neighbourhood, and read on your porch.
Ask questions, talk about the weather, laugh about something that happened. Ask for referrals – who did your driveway/kitchen/landscaping? Ask about the neighbourhood – how’s X doing? Share something – let someone park in your driveway for a party, or share newspapers.
As you do, get to know their name, and then a bit of their story.
Challenge: Look at your calendar and see how you spend your time over the last two weeks. Reflect on how this compares with your priorities. How can you spend more time with your neighbours, to get acquainted?
So what does it mean to do the will of our father in heaven, as a family of followers of Jesus? How do our values impact our routines and traditions as we develop into a church family?
One example that will guide us for the rest of this series comes from this description in the book of Acts, which tells the story of the first followers of Jesus organizing their extended family after Jesus died, rose and left the earth.
42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe[e] came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
Five main elements devoted to:
Growth in Discipleship – They shared some teaching and belief in common with each other, and those who knew Jesus, the apostles.
Groups in Community –They were together regularly.
Grace in Lifestyle – They gained favour with all the people through their changed hearts
Generosity of Resources – They were selling and sharing their possessions to ensure no one was in need.
God in Worship – They regularly attended temple worship, and were breaking bread in homes in keeping with Jesus’ instructions from the night before he died
We’ll explore each of these things in depth these next few weeks, because these are the same things our church community will be devoted to. We will try to keep it well rounded, and not just focus on one thing or another.
Challenge: Rank these from easiest to hardest for you.
Challenge #2: Try to complete the second part of grid: one fact you know about them. Not sure what we mean? Click here: https://www.redeemthecommute.com/2013/09/18/strangerstoneighbours or look under Extras.