Who is your neighbor?
God has really been speaking to me through the story of the Good
Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). I’ve
been asking myself, “If I was that man on the side of the road, who would stop
to help me?� And also, “If I
passed by someone on the side of the road, would I stop to help them,
regardless if they were a friend or a stranger?�
Last week I had the opportunity to remain in Nairobi while
my team traveled on to our ministry in Kisumu. The reason I remained behind is to be a host for our new team
member, Lynsey. She is part of a
new program with Adventures in Missions called World Race Exposure. It gives college students the
opportunity to join the World Race for one month. Four teams in our squad welcomed Exposure participants. So Brian Swanson, Amy Book, Emily
Simpson and I were picked as the host for our respective teams to welcome and
orientate the students joining the World Race. It was a welcome break from the normal race lifestyle and a
chance to bond and develop deeper relationships with others in my squad. God really used them to challenge me
and also to speak life into me.
They love the Lord and are my squadmates so it’s easy to identify them
as my neighbors. It’s easy to love
those you know and have spent the last 5 months developing relationships
with. As in the parable of the good Samaritan, I know that if I was on the
side of the road anyone on my squad would stop to help and I would do likewise
if they were the man left to die.
However, also during these few days God brought some
un
expected new neighbors into my life.
The hostel we were staying in is also a place where many backpackers
from all over the world spend days or weeks while traveling through Kenya. When I’m with my team and/or squad I’m
usually spending all my free time investing in those relationships, but last
week without most of them it was easy to get to know others. I met people from many different
countries, ethnicity and religious backgrounds, however God used them
to speak
into my life in a bigger way then they will probably ever know. For me it’s easy to get into a routine
of doing life on the World Race with other believers. I expect my teammates and my squadmates to encourage me and
to love me for who I am and nothing more.
What I didn’t expect was for some total strangers to treat me the
same. God is truly
everywhere…even in those who don’t profess to know His son Jesus Christ,
because He created them! And I’m
praying every day that Jesus will speak to my new friends and show up in their
lives by blessing them!
I challenge you to look for neighbors in unexpected places
because God wants you to show love and He wants to show you love through those
who you might not have expected!
