TRC Neighboring Stories
For everything we know about God's Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. Gal 5:14, MSG
The pandemic, political polarization, and demonstrations for racial justice led us to change how we do things and even more importantly, allowed us to re-prioritize what is truly important.
The challenge is that all lead pastors would be involved in neighboring in their own neighborhoods, and that each church member would begin to neighbor in their own neighborhoods. This involves engaging and developing relationships with your neighbor and in the context of this relationship, we are seeking our Holy Spirit directed ADJUSTMENTS & ASSIGNMENTS. For those of you who heard TRC’s Church Planting Director Rick Snodgrass's presentation in the Leadership Summits, will recognize that in order to love our neighbors, we have to "adjust" our plans, priorities, agendas, and schedules and seek our "assignment" of how to engage (conversation, assistance, celebration, etc).
The pandemic, political polarization, and demonstrations for racial justice led us to change how we do things and even more importantly, allowed us to re-prioritize what is truly important.
The challenge is that all lead pastors would be involved in neighboring in their own neighborhoods, and that each church member would begin to neighbor in their own neighborhoods. This involves engaging and developing relationships with your neighbor and in the context of this relationship, we are seeking our Holy Spirit directed ADJUSTMENTS & ASSIGNMENTS. For those of you who heard TRC’s Church Planting Director Rick Snodgrass's presentation in the Leadership Summits, will recognize that in order to love our neighbors, we have to "adjust" our plans, priorities, agendas, and schedules and seek our "assignment" of how to engage (conversation, assistance, celebration, etc).
The best time for neighboring is today. Everyone has the assignment...to go and make. I was talking to Patti, my wife, last night and she was telling me that she felt burdened for our new neighbor. She has been praying for her and had yet to meet Debbie. She said she had an assignment from God for this new person. Wait, how do we know her name you ask? Here is a piece of the thread text from Patti's phone last night.
Several texts later we learned much more. It is always appropriate to love people when the Holy Spirit leads. It is never appropriate to ignore the prompting to act on Christ's behalf.
Several texts later we learned much more. It is always appropriate to love people when the Holy Spirit leads. It is never appropriate to ignore the prompting to act on Christ's behalf.
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The Art of Neighboring
Building Genuine Relationships Right Outside Your Door What if Jesus meant that we should love our actual neighbors? When Jesus was asked to sum up everything into one command, he said to love God with everything we have and to love our neighbors as ourselves. Most of us have turned this simple idea of loving our neighbors into a nice saying, putting it on bumper stickers and refrigerator magnets and then going on with our lives without actually putting it into practice. What would happen if every follower of Jesus took the Great Commandment literally? Is it possible that the solution to our society's biggest issues has been right under our noses for the past two thousand years? |
The River Conference's Neighboring Challenge
During our Leadership Summits this fall, we put out a challenge to neighbor. Below are some resources that you can use to further our mission to make disciples through, literally, being a neighbor.
During our Leadership Summits this fall, we put out a challenge to neighbor. Below are some resources that you can use to further our mission to make disciples through, literally, being a neighbor.