Everyday Prayers for LoveSample

Loving Your Neighbor

We were building a home on our farm, and one day, while walking our two dogs, a German Shepherd ran through the fields to greet us. Then an unfamiliar car came down our gravel driveway. An elderly woman, hardly five foot tall, exited her sedan. “Hello, I’m Doris,” the petite powerhouse introduced herself, extending her hand in neighborly welcome. She’d been meaning to stop by to meet us and coming to retrieve her dog, Russell, stopped her excuses.

Recently widowed, Doris manages a farm larger than ours. She and Russell visit almost daily. We love getting to spend time with her. More often than not, she brings baked goods, cuttings from her garden, or a surprise for the kids.

My family has moved multiple times, and we have not always been as fortunate with our neighbors as we have been with Doris. We’ve lived next to people who have been noisy, nosy, rude, and unfriendly. I imagine you have had many of the same experiences. But God tells us to love our neighbor. Not just people like Doris or Mr. Rogers, but everyone.

Jesus teaches the concept of neighborly love in the parable of the good Samaritan, who helps a man who was robbed, beaten, and left for dead. Jesus told this parable in response to the question: “Who is my neighbor?”

This story calls us to consider who our neighbor is and what it means to love them without bias or judgment. If we see a neighbor with a physical, financial, emotional, or spiritual need, we should act to meet that need.

Prayer

Father, some people are easy to love, but others can be more difficult. Forgive me for not reaching out to my neighbors when I should have. Lead me to know when and how to help the people You have intentionally placed around me. No matter where I go and who I meet, help me to see each individual as a person to love and as an opportunity to fulfill Your command to love my neighbor. In Jesus’s name, amen.

Questions for Deeper Reflection

1. Considering the story of the Good Samaritan, who has been unneighborly to you? Is there a person who has been a good neighbor to you? How so?
2. How can you be a better neighbor to the people around you? What is one thing you plan to do for the person who lives near you?