Your Address Isn't an Accident

Oct 9

We certainly weren’t looking for one more thing to do.

We had just moved into a new home and were in the most stressful season of our lives. As an introvert, I (Chris) was already maxed with directing a local college ministry and commuting to seminary, so reaching out to the neighbors just wasn’t on my radar. Elizabeth was sapped and barely keeping her head above water while balancing ministry responsibilities along with caring for our four young kids.

Home was a place of survival mode where we hunkered down and tried to do the next urgent thing.

Looking back, we were really at a crossroads. Despite the persistent pull to stay in our busy, overwhelmed, and insulated bubble and leave our neighbors alone, there began to grow in us a sense that we needed people right around us. And, we thought, maybe it could be something fun and lifegiving in the midst of our monotony. So, we threw a small fish fry.

Little did we know at the time that God was pulling us out of the cultural story of neighboring and sweeping us into his story of redemption in our neighborhood.

WHAT IF YOUR HOME WAS MORE THAN AN ESCAPE?

Maybe you’re like us. Maybe you’re wondering how and where neighboring could possibly fit into your life. Maybe you’re barely keeping afloat as it is and you’re just waiting until the end of the day when you can finally have some down time.

We get it. We need our homes to be places where we can rest, heal, and recharge.

But what if we were to expand our belief that home is primarily a place to escape? What if we developed a mindset that home can also be a place to engage? What if God not only wants to provide healing and restoration for you at home but for your neighbors as well? And what if your neighbors are a means of grace in your life to heal and restore you?

Maybe you’ve sensed a growing desire to get to know your neighbors and see God’s kingdom come in your neighborhood. Wherever you are right now—whether overwhelmed, excited, or nervous—God has placed you for a purpose and we want to help prepare you for the long haul of neighboring.

“Wherever you are right now—whether overwhelmed, excited, or nervous—God has placed you for a purpose.”

Neighboring, after all, is much more like a crockpot than a microwave. Although microwaves are wonderful inventions, neighboring thrives in the world of marinades and slow cooking. Over time, you will get to experience the rich development of sustainable relationships that bear a lasting impact. Just think low and slow.

In order to push through the highs and lows of neighboring we must be swept up into God’s story. That is what will dictate how we respond in the day in and day out with our neighbors. How we engage—or don’t engage—with those who live next door is largely framed by the greater narrative in which we see ourselves.

NEIGHBORS: JUST LEAVE THEM ALONE?

Although there are certainly varying subplots and subcultural narratives written into our nation’s history, there seems to be a larger, overarching cultural story making its way into the fabric of our neighborhoods.

As we may have observed, this narrative has shifted dramatically throughout the years. In the past, being “neighborly” was defined primarily by knowing your neighbors personally and introducing yourself to new neighbors when they moved in. Neighborliness was characterized by the understanding that one could rely on a neighbor in times of need.

We don’t know when the story changed but we intuitively know it did. Now a “good neighbor” is based less on connection and more on etiquette. The good neighbor now is the one who takes the trash out properly, keeps the music down at night, and maintains peace.

It’s not difficult to imagine what would happen if we lived out of this kind of story brand for long. Conceivably, garage doors would remain perpetually closed, neighbors would be driven toward increased self-sufficiency, and we would feel more isolated in our homes. We’d likely hide behind our screens and even lose our ability to engage with those who might look, speak, or vote differently than us, resulting in heightened polarization and taller fences for protection. Perhaps without even realizing it, we’d feel lonelier than ever before.

The message has become “Just leave them alone.” And this is what we do.

A BETTER, MORE BIBLICAL, MESSAGE

In stark contrast to the cultural narrative stands the biblical story telling God’s great plan of redemption. It’s the story he has been writing since the beginning, a story in which he woos his followers out of the safety of their front doors into many dangers, toils, and snares. His kingdom is meant to touch every aspect of our lives, including how we interact with our neighbors.

Whereas the cultural story says, “Don’t make eye contact as you walk up your apartment stairwell” and “Open the garage door, pull the car in, shut the garage door,” the gospel story, in contrast, calls us into our own neighborhoods to see God’s story of redemption unfolding.

“Which story is currently influencing the way you show up when you walk out your front door?”

Have you ever considered how your address fits into God’s big plan? What would change if you began to live out of a better story and believe that your address is not an accident? Which story is currently influencing the way you show up when you walk out your front door?

When Jesus taught us to pray, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” he was pushing back against a fatalistic, laissez-faire attitude that sees the brokenness and isolation and says, “It is what it is.”

He was intending to create in us a holy discontent that yearns for the kingdom of God to break into our lives and persuade us that the most important thing we could ever do is to love God and love our neighbor.