Neighborology: Living Out Christ's CompassionSample

Further Growth

An auto accident in 1982 put my life on hold. I was in constant pain, unable to work, with no income and no idea what the future looked like. Suddenly, I was in the hands of the Potter, trusting, waiting, “yielded and still.”

The spiritual growth I found in being yielded and still after my auto accident was not through the performance of religious rituals, but by developing a dynamic relationship with Jesus Christ. In the four years I was unable to work, I sought to strengthen that relationship through daily Scripture reading and prayer. The fruits of that experience were enormous. Before my accident, I had posted “no trespassing signs,” thinking I could prevent God from molding and shaping me according to His will. But this was foolish. The best action I could take was to willingly surrender to God. Looking back, I can see that God used this experience to mold me into His image.

Around the same time, I began to have flashbacks of childhood trauma—a memory I had unconsciously buried to protect myself. Each time the flashbacks occurred, I attempted to bury the memories once again, but they continued to resurrect themselves. I felt so broken, and I could not fix myself. My brokenness was all for good. God was at work. By understanding God’s love and sovereignty and the limitations of my own timetable and agenda, I gained peace. But change took time and the power of the Holy Spirit. It required patient waiting. Similarly, God was waiting for me to pray for the work of the Spirit, to fill me with His presence, His thoughts, and His words.

Speaking of this type of spiritual renewal, God’s love in us must be visible. If people don’t see in us a walk and a talk that reflects holiness, that is a good indication of where we are spiritually. God’s love is seen as we live it out. Our rela­tionship with Christ must have an impact on all our other relationships: spouse, children, friends, employees, and employers. There is no relationship that you and I can enter into that is not directly affected by our spiritual life in Christ. Servant hearts are shaped by our spiritual lives in Christ, and the result is our serving the world around us. When we study the Bible, we should have ears to hear what God is saying to us—words that mold us to be good neighbors.

Spiritual renewal should make us more conscious of our relationship with God: how he cares for us and how we must care for others because of this loving relationship. This is what I call a “theology of caring.” This theological mindset is born from our personal pilgrimage involving a search for identity and the development of a healthy relationship with God the Father and Jesus Christ, His Son.

It also involves developing a godly, obedient understanding of service and caring. Having this biblical theology of caring empowers us to live out the great command to love the Lord with all our hearts and to love our neighbors as ourselves (see Matt. 22:35–40). We who have servant hearts are molded and perfected as God changes us over time.

The character building described in James 1:2–4 is essential for those whom God uses as His compassionate servants and good neighbors.