Those of you who follow me may have noticed that I have been quiet for about a week. Last week, I was crossing the plains of Nebraska in search of future workers for God's kingdom. While it's not as large as my home state of Texas, there are still plenty of miles to travel there, and enough things to keep working on that I just ran out of time.
So, what else has been going on? Glad you asked. Just yesterday, we hosted a block party for our street for the second year in a row. The smaller city we live in provides hot dogs and drinks, and leaves barricades at the ends of the street, so that the residents of the street can get to know each other, eat together, and create a stronger neighborhood. Last year, we were pleasantly surprised at the turnout, and this year, it was even bigger.
When God tells us to love our neighbor, we understand that there are multiple ways to understand the term "neighbor." Yes, it means the literal person who lives next door, and we are to strive to live at peace with them, as much as it lies with us. It also means the people of our general area (city, metro area, county, state, and nation). On the largest of scales, we also understand it to mean every person that God has created on this earth.
For us, the block party is a great way to bring that love and care to our literal neighbors. We met some new neighbors, reconnected with some that we hadn't seen too much over the last year, and connected even more deeply with some we see with regularity. It's also interesting to see their reactions when they learn of my work, though for the most part, they seemed rather accommodating to serving the Lord (especially since we have two sets of nuns that live on our street). I even had one of the nuns ask me if I knew a certain pastor in the area, who just happens to be my pastor at the church I attend! It's amazing what you learn when you live life together.
I had to miss an on-campus event that evening in which we hosted a theologian who was speaking on Dietrich Bonhoeffer's book, "Life Together." Though I missed the session, I would hope that Bonhoeffer would agree with the reason for missing it, that I was living life together with the people on my street. My hope is that we Christians can become more known for such activities as this.
So, what else has been going on? Glad you asked. Just yesterday, we hosted a block party for our street for the second year in a row. The smaller city we live in provides hot dogs and drinks, and leaves barricades at the ends of the street, so that the residents of the street can get to know each other, eat together, and create a stronger neighborhood. Last year, we were pleasantly surprised at the turnout, and this year, it was even bigger.
When God tells us to love our neighbor, we understand that there are multiple ways to understand the term "neighbor." Yes, it means the literal person who lives next door, and we are to strive to live at peace with them, as much as it lies with us. It also means the people of our general area (city, metro area, county, state, and nation). On the largest of scales, we also understand it to mean every person that God has created on this earth.
For us, the block party is a great way to bring that love and care to our literal neighbors. We met some new neighbors, reconnected with some that we hadn't seen too much over the last year, and connected even more deeply with some we see with regularity. It's also interesting to see their reactions when they learn of my work, though for the most part, they seemed rather accommodating to serving the Lord (especially since we have two sets of nuns that live on our street). I even had one of the nuns ask me if I knew a certain pastor in the area, who just happens to be my pastor at the church I attend! It's amazing what you learn when you live life together.
I had to miss an on-campus event that evening in which we hosted a theologian who was speaking on Dietrich Bonhoeffer's book, "Life Together." Though I missed the session, I would hope that Bonhoeffer would agree with the reason for missing it, that I was living life together with the people on my street. My hope is that we Christians can become more known for such activities as this.
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