Hundreds of Different Choices Define Neighboring Relationships

 

Developing positive and loving relationships with your neighbors does not happen in one day or even one week. Instead, the relationship takes time and depends on hundreds of different choices.

I have observed that neighboring relationships are defined by everyday actions that you choose to make. For example, we can choose to linger at the mailbox for a conversation when we grab the mail instead of rushing back inside our home.

We can choose to spend all of our time indoors or in the backyard away from others. We could all benefit from more front yard living!

We can choose to learn your neighbor's name and use it. There is a big difference between waving at a neighbor and saying, "Hey you" versus "Hey Matt." One is personal and the other, honestly, is indifferent and apathetic.

How about the choice to take off the headphones when walking and visit with a neighbor in their yard.

There is the choice to overlook past wrongs or current issues and offer mercy instead. This might be the first step toward turning the relationship around.

Neighboring is a lifestyle. It is not something you accomplish in just one year because your church or friends emphasize the topic. Becoming a loving and caring neighbor requires daily choices over a lifetime.

We make choices not to be fearful about our neighbors.

We can choose to invite a neighbor in, share food together, or even let them borrow a tool.

We even choose whether to borrow something from a neighbor or go purchase our own. Men, be honest, have you ever just gone and bought a tool for a one-time use instead of asking to borrow one from a neighbor? (My Lowe's card proves that I have).

In 2019, I was convicted that I was not behaving like a loving neighbor. When my paradigm shifted, I began to see all types of opportunities. Things that had been present for years but that I never took the time to notice. And then, I was confronted with choices.

Return an elder neighbors trash dumpster. Deliver a kind note of encouragement to a neighbor. Let a neighbor know their garage door is open, a shingle is off their roof, or even a light is burned out. Maybe even taking note of large deliveries on their front porch!

Webster's dictionary defines the word choice as "an act of selecting or making a decision when faced with two or more possibilities." When faced with choices where you live, choose in favor of love, kindness, mercy, and building a relationship with your neighbor.

You will be surprised at the difference that can happen in a year or two simply because of the small choices you make.

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Does this article make you interested in taking the Engaged Neighbor pledge? Five categories and 20 principles to guide you toward becoming an engaged neighbor. Sign the pledge online at http://engagedneighbor.com.

Contact the blog author, David L. Burton at dburton541@yahoo.com.