There’s a light on in the house across the street. The house has been empty for a year. But, the realtor sign is down today. It appears that we are about to have new neighbors.
Just over a year ago, the day after Christmas, we looked out our window to see our neighbors loading up a moving van. Michael went across the street to give them a hand. We found out that due to the unfavorable economic climate, the husband had lost his job and the house was in for-closure.
I don’t actually remember meeting them for the first time when they moved in three years earlier. It was a bit of a stretch getting acquainted because we were from such different backgrounds. But, we made some effort to get to know them. It was the typical neighborly stuff – waving from the driveway, kids playing together, stopping to chat after mowing the grass. Definitely nothing out of the ordinary.
And that’s the problem. We discussed several times the fact that it seemed our neighbors needed Jesus. There was no evidence that they knew Him at all. We tossed around a few Ideas of how to get to know them a bit better, but we never really did much about it. I felt sure that they had been put in our paths for a specific purpose but I dragged my feet. And I made excuses.
I was good at ‘legitimate’ excuses. I had to teach piano lessons. My pregnancy kept me feeling lousy, so I didn’t really want to be social. Emily’s home schooling was a priority. The husband, who was a truck driver, was consistently home on Sunday mornings. But, we had obligations at church.
I remember watching them from my living room window as they moved out of their house. I could feel my heart sinking to the bottom of my stomach. Opportunity had passed. Our friends were leaving and we had done nothing to truly show them Jesus. I cried hot tears that day. My disobedience was hard to resolve in my heart, even after begging for God’s forgiveness.
Recently I read the story of Jonah to my daughter and thoughts of our old neighbors came flooding back. They were my Nineveh. God had moved in my heart and I ignored Him. No, I didn’t flee to anywhere. But, I disobeyed – just like Jonah did. When God asked me to go to my neighbors – I went to church instead. I’ve asked myself a lot since then – What good is going to church, if you can’t stay home one Sunday morning and share Jesus over a cup of coffee with a neighbor who doesn’t know Him?
Now days I pray regularly for our neighbors. We have lost touch with them. But, I ask God to send a reliable believer to them who will give them Jesus in a very real way. And I pray for God to give me another opportunity. And as I look out across the street at the light in our neighbor’s house it appears that maybe He has…
md
(written January 16, 2010)
daily portion 