Love your neighbor

In the Bible, we are told to love our neighbor. How does that play out in real life, though? Jay Pathak and Dave Runyon explain how to do that in their book "The Art of Neighboring: Building Genuine Relationships Right Outside Your Door."

In this passage from the book, the authors explain that being a good neighbor is easier than we expect:

We all assume someone else is the expert. But when it comes to loving our neighbors, every situation is different. Every neighbor is different, and every person who is trying to love others has a variety of gifts to offer. We all have various strengths and weaknesses. But if we allow ourselves to get involved in the lives of others, miracles can happen. God can intervene and do amazing things.

Many years ago our friend David took over a struggling church that had become fairly stagnant and uninspiring. Most of the people in the church weren't relating with anyone outside the church, and they didn't really have any kind of connection to their city. David knew that something had to be done; he just didn't know what. So he attended conferences at other successful churches. He started reading every popular book he could get his hands on about church growth and health. It was after learning about many different options that he began to ask God which one should be the path for his church. In prayer he started laying out all the possibilities, hoping God would lead him toward the best road. That's when he heard God say something to him, and it wasn't what he expected to hear. He heard clearly from God, Just do something.

God just wants us to make some effort at being neighborly. We were built to connect with others.