Moving Down the Line

In the 90’s I listened to this one song which had the chorus “Love can build a bridge, between your heart and mine” (I love The Judds’ music). When I listened to Pastor Bryce’s sermon I had to think back to that song. He repeatedly mentions that the Art of Neighboring is like building a bridge. Taking us along in the story of the Good Samaritan, we see that building bridges require a humble heart, gentle care, and patience while in the process. 

Building bridges takes time. Good Neighboring takes time. But the reward can be phenomenal. 

You might say now, “well, you don’t know my neighbor”. – Yes, I agree, there are neighbors that think differently than we do. They have different values than we do. They even talk differently than we do. But, so what? To that neighbor, you are different. You have that different view. You speak differently. Should that really keep you from connecting with your neighbor? 

Let me ask you something: Who do you think is scared of you? And why? Are there people in your neighborhood that might be scared of you, or not so sure about you? 

Let me challenge you today to do two things: 

1. In your family, or by yourself, identify that one neighbor that you don’t really know. Make it a goal for each one of your family members to find out one thing about that specific neighbor. Show interest. Genuine interest. And then ask that neighbor if he/she could use some help with something. Build a bridge to that neighbor. 

You do not have to look far to find scary news. Just this past week we have seen tragic footage of George Floyd’s death with the protests and riots in response. Our natural tendency is to have an “us vs. them” mentality, to fear the “other”. But fear shrivels our capacity for empathy, to build relationships and love our neighbor. We lose our ability to imagine a different way marked by justice and peace.

2. Evaluate your own surrounding. What could be the main thing people around you are afraid of? Do you have any fears or concerns within your neighborhood? What can you do to minimize that fear level and shine the light of God’s peace into your neighborhood? Be practical. What is that one thing you can do to promote peace? 

There are many ways to build bridges. What’s mentioned above are just two practical ways of how you can build a bridge. It starts in your family and then spills over into your neighborhood. Let us be builders. Bridge builders for the Kingdom of God.