Meeting the Neighbors

 



We were blessed to purchase a winter home in a wonderful neighborhood in Florida this year. In the evenings I love to walk, and I try to pick a different street so I can meet the neighbors. We were back in town for just a week or so, and I wanted to exchange emails with a neighbor I had met in March, so I decided to walk to her house.

When I rang her doorbell, I felt like I had hit the jackpot. To my surprise, several neighbors were sitting at her table playing dominoes. I love to meet new people and was excited as she introduced me to everyone. They immediately began to tell neighborhood stories and made me feel welcome.

Somewhere amid the conversation, I mentioned that I was a Christian author and speaker. Maybe it was poor timing, or they didn’t know what to think of me at that point. One of my new friends seemed embarrassed because she had been married four times. I immediately said, “Who am I to judge? I’m on number two myself.”

I pray that when I left that evening, none of my new friends felt that I was judging them. In a short five to ten-minute conversation, I had a wonderful time and I look forward to more neighborhood stories and laughing.

Jesus didn’t judge others. Instead, He associated with them and showed them unconditional love. In the story of the adulterous woman, He showed her grace, setting a wonderful example for us on how to treat others. (John 8:1-11).

All too often we look at others through judgmental eyes. It is so much easier to see the faults of someone else than it is to see our own shortcomings. We are not supposed to judge one another, instead, God calls us to love each other.

“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged. (Matthew 7:1-2).

What a powerful warning in the scriptures—reminding us to treat others how we want to be treated ourselves. None of us live a perfect life, yet Christ is there to rescue us when we fail.

“Christ never reaches down to us or looks down at us. He reaches out to save us. No matter where you and I are, or what we have done, He reaches out to rescue us.”[i] Let us live by Christ’s example of not judging the sins of others. Instead, let’s remember to reach out and help our friends and neighbors. In doing so, we will enjoy great fellowship and laughter with friends!

[i] Rodman, M. (2020). Cast the First Stone be Transformed by Grace (1st ed., Ser. The Irrepressible Disciple Series). Legacy Lane Publishing.

 

Location: Radnor, OH 43066, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Crazy Messy

Image
Sometimes life gets crazy messy, like my house while we were waiting on new flooring. We ordered vinyl flooring for the office and carpet for the bedroom. They estimated it would be about three weeks before it arrived. I saw no hurry to empty either room and paint. After all, I had plenty of time. My three weeks turned into about ten days, and I had very little notice they were coming to install the office flooring. I literally dumped piles of papers into boxes as I cleared the desks and closet so I could paint, before the new flooring was installed. Before the office was back together, I also had to empty the bedroom, which made for an even bigger mess! We had piles in every corner and small furniture on top larger items. It’s not always our piles of paper, our closets, and drawers that create the disasters in life. Messy can come from emotional stress, or difficult decisions. Family disputes or unexpected tragedies. You fill in the blank. What part of your life is crazy messy or has
Read more

The Missing Sock

Image
  I dropped a laundry basket of clean clothes near my husband’s chair. I knew it was a long shot, but I thought maybe he would notice the basket and match socks while he watched the TV. (Try it sometime, because it worked!) When he got to the end of the basket, he was missing a sock. No big deal, it happens all the time. I set the sock on top of the dresser and figured its friend would show up in another load. Fast forward several days and I’m at the chiropractor standing at the front desk. I removed my jacket and took a step backward. Much to my surprise, there was my husband’s missing sock on the floor. The sweatshirt I was wearing was in the same load of laundry. Apparently the missing sock found a new friend and became rather clingy. I picked it up off of the floor, chuckled and said, “I found my husband’s missing sock. I write devotions. There is a story in here somewhere.” During biblical times Palestinian women received ten silver coins as a wedding gift. These coins were not on
Read more

Have Faith and Pray

Image
  Faith is an element in my life, which I have questioned from time to time. What exactly is faith? Hebrews 11:1 (NIV) says “F aith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” If I pray for something in faith and it doesn’t happen, is that a lack of faith? I have come to realize over the years that it is not. We need to understand and be thankful that God sometimes says, “No.” I grew up in a godly home where examples of faith surrounded me. On the family farm, there was a great deal of work, but there were also lessons of faith. I watched year after year as my father planted the seed and had faith it would grow. The seed needed to receive the right amount of rain, sunshine, and nutrients to produce a crop, which provided food for his dairy cattle and an income for his family. I observed my mother, who was definitely a Proverbs 31 woman. She had the faith necessary to stretch Dad’s income to provide for their five children. Her faith showed her how to b
Read more