Let them help you. For their eternal good.

I have often thought of ways of helping my neighbour. (This is about my former neighbour. I have no idea who stays next door in this new apartment.) The family who stayed next door was known only by the noises their child made when he threw a tantrum . The young husband would return from work late at night, and that meant I  got few chances to interact with him on weekdays.

In those moments when I felt strongly the need to be a true neighbour, I would remember the words of Jesus Christ “Love your neighbour as yourself” … and I would go into a flurry of thoughts –

“Maybe I should prepare a  nice dessert for them ?” And I did that  (Yes I have successfully made a yummy dessert- Ha!).

“Maybe I should go out & say “HI” when I hear the guy open his front door.” (And I did that too).

“Maybe I should knock their door down with a big log of wood and see if they need anything” (Sorry, that was the superhero in me speaking) .

The desire to help comes from the God-given desire to interact more with my neighbours’ lives and to create avenues for them to see the precious relationship I have with my God , Jesus Christ. I wish the best for them and desire that they would see the new life & joy & hope He gave me by sacrificing Himself for my wrong thoughts and deeds. I hope they would want to turn one day from their selfish ways, just like I did many years ago, and turn to the Living God and the precious book of truth, The Bible. I pray that they are found by this God who is so merciful, He saved undeserving folks like me from the eternally terrible consequences of my life.

But I noticed that I was not so effective in helping out this family next door!

I kept asking myself how on earth could I find a way to help them SO radically that they would ask with eyes wide-open : “Why did you help us in such a stupendous manner ??!”  That of course would be my cue to roll out my scroll and deliver my speech about the reason I am such a helpful guy : My God Jesus !

🙂

If you have happened to be in a Bible-believing church group and any helpful Christian community, you would have noticed the eagerness shown by other Christians to help you.  But well, what do Christians do when opportunities to help neighbours don’t come by?

I have a feeling that sometimes we Christians in general are not very good at asking for help.

But why do we need help ? And from non-Christian folks? We have our strong local Christian community, right? We have church friends who would rush to our aid in 10 mins flat like a team of commandos ready for warfare.

But have we forgotten the “non-Christian” store and the “non-Christian” police force that God uses to provide for and protect us? If our aim is to show our neighbours the way Christ-followers live, then should we also not let them see that we are not self-sufficient Supermen and Superwomen, but people who are dependent on the Lord God and the things He created?

I am privileged to see a couple of Christ-followers who have asked for help from their neighbours. And what interactions that has created. May those interactions be sustained by God’s grace! Way to go, brothers and sisters! May your tribe increase. May I be enabled to join your tribe!

Maybe you should let your neighbour be more involved in your life – by asking them to help you in some way? Maybe it will be only after such an act you do to humble yourself that the old man next-door might consider asking you for help? Maybe until now your “Christian home” has been represented by one more heavy wooden door that slams shut loudly when the wind blows? If it has been just that, then maybe you need to repent of your self-sufficiency in the context of your neighbourhood?  And dont try to ask for help by your own strategies or wisdom- better ask the Holy Spirit to help, lest you find it all be done with the wrong attitude in heart.

Yeah, I may not have any Bible verse that commands Christ-followers to ask their neighbours’ for help. But surely the principle is a wise one? Neither am I saying that we should be a pain in our neighbours’ neck by pounding on their doors every hour from 7pm to midnight. But let God lead you in this, ok?

So, have you considered asking your neighbour for practical help ?

To get some fuel for you? To help you carry the groceries into your house? To book a flight or train ticket for you ?

Your neighbour could be God’s answer.

So, let them help you. For their eternal good.