Brownies???

By Aaron S.

Yes, I bake brownies, :-) and after our community group the other day, we had so many brownies left, I decided to bring some over to our neighbors, Big Jake and Karen. Jake is a big guy, with a big truck and a big dog. I have been trying to get to know them since they moved in 9 months ago, but it's tough to catch them in. Today I saw his truck in the driveway, so I went over, and as I walked up to the door, the first thing I saw is a big sign ... "NO soliciting, fundraising, politics, salesmen, religion. Thank you!" Not exactly the welcome that I was hoping for. Feeling discouraged, I started to walk away, but then I thought, "Well it didn't say no brownies," so I turned around and knocked. I could hear their big dog bark in the back, and then Jake came to the door.

As the door opened, I wondered if he was going to tell me "Thanks, but get lost." Instead, he had a big smile and was so surprised to see me. I told him that we had way too many brownies to keep in the house because we would eat them all, and he told me he would be happy to help. Jake has two preteen kids, and he said they would be home soon to enjoy them all together.

We talked for a few more minutes, and then I had to get going. I am excited to get to know Jake and his family better as neighbors. Jake and I agreed that we would figure out another time to connect. It reminded me that when I make the effort to walk a few houses down and knock, there are new relationships waiting. And in those new relationships, God wants to bless me and bless others through me. I am hopeful that I can continue to encourage Jake and others as a neighbor, and my prayer is that they would see God through me and be drawn to Jesus and experience his love for them.

If you haven't had a chance, take a look at the book, "The Art of Neighboring," by Jay Pathak and Dave Runyon. It's all about building genuine relationships right outside your front door, which is the subtitle. The premise is that building relationships with our neighbors helps to build better neighborhoods, better communities, and ultimately a better world--a world where people love each other and love God. That's the type of world I want to live in, and as a church, that's the type of world we want to help build together.