The beauty of working in one neighborhood as a believer is that I do not get to chose my neighbor. This is great! We talk about this so much in our churches, "we want people to come that don't know the good news." Well to me treating our neighborhoods better is a great place to start. There are so many ways that we choose people who will be in our clubs. We dress certain ways. We are members at certain places. The list goes on and on. But when you get home at night you had little to say about who lives next to you. It is true though that we make efforts to choose our neighbors too. If we have the ability to choose what neighborhood to live in, we have the means to move into a place where people probably look and think a lot like us.
My family and I have been in Omaha for about 9 months. As we set out for this city we had a spark in us to pursue neighborhood development. Anyone that knows us knows that we also believe that Jesus is the only answer for a fallen world. That being said we have been on a journey to live out the life of Jesus in our neighborhood. As we have done this we discover that most people do not have a problem with Jesus. So what does neighborhood development and the Gospel have in common. Well for one are we being good neighbors? There is so much that Jesus taught us that we are not doing, as one person we can feel overwhelmed. What can one person do to bring light to the world?
If we started to treat our neighborhoods better we would start to meet our neighbors. The great thing about focusing on one place is that your neighbor’s needs are your needs. It is now not about us doing something to or for someone ,it is about us working with our neighbors.
In our neighborhood there is a great park that does not get used that much and is a bit ragged. The grounds have a lot of weeds and the equipment is sort of falling apart. There is a baseball field that has an infield completely full of grass. As I was walking my dog yesterday I noticed that there was a man and three boys playing baseball. I went up to him. “It is great to see this field getting some use.” I said. “Yeah the field is not in the best shape but it works.” He said. “Who is responsible for the upkeep?” “The city.” He said. “We are working on getting some new equipment at the park and then we are going to start working down here.” “Who are you with” I said. “The Gifford Park association.” At that our conversation was done for the time being. But this conversation can be continued at the monthly neighborhood meeting. Where there is a group of neighbors already meeting to work for the good of our neighborhood.
When I look at the Gospel I am encouraged that this is a good approach. Jesus had government officials, tax collectors, fisherman, Pharisees, prostitutes all over for supper. As we seek to follow Christ we will probably run into the same issues he did. We will probably get push back but I feel like focusing on one neighborhood is something small that I can do. There is a lot that I can’t do. The impact that my life (Changed by Christ) could have is magnified by focusing on the small things. In a neighborhood there is no divide between what is sacred and what is secular, we are just neighbors.
Here is a prayer that is hanging on the side of my door to remind me to keep our neighborhood in prayer. “O Lord, our creator, by your holy prophet you taught your ancient people to seek the welfare of the cities in which they lived. We commend our neighborhood to your care, that it might be kept free from social strife and decay. Give us strength of purpose and concern for others, that we may create here a community of justice and peace where your will may be done; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
