Motivations for Being a Good Neighbor: As Part of a Calling (4 in a series of 4)

 


Where neighbors share a sense of community, residents are more likely to feel safe and secure and have a lower fear of crime than those without a sense of community. People living in connected neighborhoods feel healthier and are happier about their lives and are more likely to vote and help others by volunteering. For these reasons and many more, being a good neighbor and connecting with others on your block improves the neighborhood and helps you personally. 

Neighborliness is not a special talent - it is a decision! Anyone can be a good neighbor —it just takes a little initiative, but the rewards make it worthwhile. Neighborhoods with a higher sense of community enjoy a higher quality of life. 

So please do it for yourself and your family.

Motivation for action can vary widely among humans. But there seem to be four major motivators for individuals to begin reaching and loving their neighbors.

As part of a calling

Many Christians believe they are called — or commanded — to love their neighbor. In fact, all five major world religions include the idea of loving your neighbor. Christians are the ones who tend to see it as a calling. The downside is that a majority of Christians also already see themselves as a good neighbor despite the fact that most do not know the names of all their immediate neighbors.

· The Bible has a lot to say about neighboring.  Starting in Luke 10:25-29 (and elsewhere), Jesus said, "Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, your soul, your mind, and your strength, and love your neighbor as yourself." Believers refer to this as the Great Commandment.

· Many people still try to define the word neighbor ourselves. We say to ourselves, "Wow, that's incredible. Everyone is my neighbor, and I'm doing a lot of good stuff so I'm just neighboring all the time." The problem is, when we aim for everything, we hit nothing. So when we insist we are neighbors with everybody, we end up being neighbors with nobody.

· According to the governments own statistics and research, Christians are 23% more likely to donate to charity, 25% more likely to volunteer in the community.

· An ongoing research project in Kansas shows the people with religious beliefs are 30% more likely to be concerned about loving their neighbor.

· Amy Lively, in her book, “How to Love Your Neighbor Without Being Weird” writes: “ I couldn’t find an exception clause in the second-greatest commandment. I had every excuse in the book for not loving my neighbors, and a few I’m sure God had never heard before. But I couldn’t find an asterisk or exemption to get me off the hook.


MORE INFORMATION

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.

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