So there we were. We had picked up and moved 1,000 miles to a new area to start a church with zero contacts. But where do we start? How do we get to know people? Certainly as a family, we’re generally more outgoing and hospitable by nature; but this required taking it to a whole new level well beyond our comfort zones. And what we learned became more than a matter of sinking or swimming for our very livelihood, it became a way of life.

In the Parable of the Good Samaritan, an expert in Jewish law asked about inheriting eternal life. When Jesus questioned him about how he read it, the man answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Luke 10:27) But then the question came, “Who is my neighbor?”

As usual, Jesus’ response challenged the thinking of the day. Do our neighbors look like us, talk like us and act like us? Are they the people we like? Are they the people we don’t like? Are they the people we consider good or bad? Jesus reminded them that neighboring well isn’t just about loving the people who are easy to love, it’s also about loving the people who aren’t easy to love.

So how do we apply this to our own contexts? How do we neighbor well in our own neighborhoods and communities?

• Learn the names of the people around you. It’s simple, but how many of us really know the names of the people in the 8 houses around us?
• But don’t just learn their names, learn something about them you can’t tell just by looking at their yards. Ask them about their interests and hobbies. Ask them about their likes and dislikes.
• Earn the right to learn the deep stuff. That means you have to engage people in more than just conversations. Invite them over for a BBQ. Have a weekly campfire in your backyard or front driveway. Have a movie night, borrow a projector and throw a movie on a sheet on your garage door. Rally neighbors to throw a block party.
• If you’re handy, offer to lend a hand with a project (landscaping, putting in a fence, installing a garage door opener, painting, cutting grass, etc.). Better yet, just show up and start helping since many people won’t take you up on your offer to help.
• Make a meal and surprise them with it, or call them up and tell them you’re providing dinner tomorrow.
• Ask them if there is anything in their lives that needs prayer.
• Certainly invite them to church. But, remember, the old adage remains true: “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”

The point is that you have to be intentional. We get so busy in our own summer routines: vacations, sports and projects that we rarely take time for our neighbors. We let fear get in the way. We say, “I’m not extroverted.” We tell ourselves, “I’m not equipped!” or “They’re not like me!” or “They’re broken/bad people.”

But if we are to “love our neighbors as ourselves,” it means that we need to build time into our busy schedules, we need to forgo our fears, and we need to eliminate our excuses. So let’s try to neighbor well as we head into this summer. Let’s choose to love as Jesus loved us in word and deed.