This week we’re exploring this idea of “people of peace”.  Jesus sent his followers to various towns, and asked them find people of peace and go deeply in relationship with them, and not to go from house to house.  This was selective by design, and Jesus is okay with that.  Jesus focused on his 12 disciples, and sometimes even smaller groups, through much of his ministry.  Here he sends 72, not 72000.

Jesus sends them to focus on one family in each town.  Go deep into relationship with them.  He even says, if things don’t work out, move on.

But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’ I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. (Luke 10:10-12)

There can be all sorts of reasons why someone doesn’t want a close relationship with a follower of Jesus.  The authors of “The Art of Neighbouring” suggest they may be:

  • Too busy
  • Wary of certain people
  • Already relationally full
  • At a different stage of life
  • Afraid of exposure

They may not be your person of peace.  Not now, or ever.  They may be someone else’s person of peace!   But if they welcome you, are hospitable and friendly, invest in them, and they will invest in you.

Sometimes it’s obvious, but if it is not obvious, pray, and just dive in, meet people, see who pops up as generous, caring, patient, and hospitable.

Question: Who do you think might be a person of peace in your neighbourhood?

Ryan Sim - September 16, 2013

Monday - A New Idea - Strangers to Neighbours

Won\'t You Be My Neighbour?

Last week, I shared that a 2005 StatsCan study revealed 61 per cent of rural residents knew all of their neighbours, but only 16 per cent of those living in major urban centres did. This isn’t terribly surprising. Do you have a hard time remembering names in the first place? I certainly do, even though I know I shouldn’t. Sometimes I forget the moment someone tells me…I was too busy thinking about what to say next! But names are important. According to a Lifehacker blog post, “a person's own name is the single most important word to him/her; it is intimately tied to his/her identity as an individual. How you deal with people's names can have a profound effect on their impressions of you: Think about the times you've felt special when someone you admired addressed you by your name in a sincere tone; or think about the times when you've felt belittled when someone negligently called you by the wrong name, or worse, maliciously made fun of your name in front of you.” But something so important is also so easily forgotten. Sometimes it’s physiology, since “names are among the first things to go as our brains begin shrinking — by about half of one per cent annually — starting as early as our thirties.” People come up with all kinds of strategies for remembering names. Personally, I write the name down as soon as I can, since it helps me most to see the name in print somewhere. It works for me, but maybe not you. Question: How well do you remember names? What strategies help you?

From Series: "Won't You Be My Neighbour?"

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