Most of us don’t want a new neighbor. Not really. I know I don’t. I’ll say I like to be neighborly, but the honest truth is that new neighbors are a lot of work. The opportunity cost is just too high compared to the potential returns.
New relationships take a lot of energy. And really, who has the time? Who wants the unpredictable ways in which a new neighbor will interrupt and disrupt their carefully calendared life?
Not me. Probably not you. It’s easier just to stay out of the front yard as much as possible.
Nevertheless, like it or not, new folks move in next door.
Eugene Peterson puts it like this:
The Word became flesh and blood,
and moved into the neighborhood.
John 1:14, The Message
Most of us aren’t looking for a new neighbor, even if it’s God. You don’t have to be very well-read to know this: God is the most disruptive kind of neighbor. The neighborhood will never be the same again, and I like the neighborhood just the way it is, thank you very much.
But maybe it’s worth just swallowing hard, peeking over the fence, and saying “Hello, neighbor.” And then letting the conversation take us where it may.
