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"Won't You Be My Neighbor?" Advice You Never Heard From Mr. Rogers

In the MSN dictionary, a neighbor is considered someone who lives nearby or close to us. In smaller font, a neighbor is described as a fellow human being. This is exactly the "fine print" Jesus alluded to in Luke 10 when a Jewish "expert” lawyer asked him the question "who is our neighbor". This was in response to an old Leviticus verse stating "love thy neighbor as thyself". Here is an attorney who is asking a stupid question. Jesus, who made time even for stupid questions, dumbed it down, for this "expert" in religion and law. If you want eternal life, you must love God with all your heart, anddddd love your neighbor.

Why was this so hard for a Jewish attorney to swallow...? because Jesus’ definition of neighbor didn't fall into his comfortable little box. It is not, of course, hard to love your best friend, family, or those in your "social circle"... What is hard... is loving those that are outside of your comfort zone... those out of your way... those that are not "Jews", not "attorneys", not "religious".... Isn't that the point...? Why should we get an eternal reward for loving our friends... the challenge is loving our frenemies... our fellow human beings...this is truly the definition for neighbor.........

It is the need of one... not the geography that makes them targets for our kindness... it is the wounded that we "engulf" along the way... the injured, collapsed on the ground of our daily sidewalk... that we bump into in the parking lot, in line, at the gym, online... thrown in our path... that we are encouraged to love...

Though we have been failed time and time again by all those around us... we have even disappointed ourselves... we are trapped in our hearts.... via coveting and jealousy and anger and injury... we are insecure... and sad... and broken ourselves... how can a broken vase hold water...or how in the world can we help others when we ourselves need so much assistance... like the "good samaritan" we can only walk our path the best we can... but when we see a need, our greatest achievement in life... can be to meet the need by sacraficing our ears, our time, our hearts, our love... for a stranger

how many of us recall the impact it left ... when a stranger intervened to "save us" from a time of desperation... a traffic crash, a flat tire, an empty crib, a broken marriage, a bitter divorce, the loss of a parent, an addiction, a break-up, a failure...

Many of us help people for a living... it is a course or path in life we chose because “saving people" from harm's way is considered the greatest honor... I recall so many eyes... desperately searching mine for answers... for peace... for protection...for help... a little girl in an abusive home... a drug starved baby screaming for solitude... a meth addict laying on the floor of a storage locker... a husband dealing with the death of his newlywed wife... a clerk robbed and shot... an elderly burglary victim... a car thief... a family with a member engrossed in alcohol... a Vietnamese woman living with a horrific, abusive husband... her black eyes and bloody mouth silenced by fear......

these were my neighbors... my fellow human beings... that was such an honor and a blessing to help... maybe not with words of wisdom... because what can you say to appease the topic of death... silence and prayer and love is the greatest healer......

for those who may not come across a meth addict, and an abused child in your daily routine... there are those you DO come in contact with that have unfathomable home lives... secret lives.. and heartaches... that we must not condemn or turn away... we cannot save the world... no....... we can save one... we can... we must set aside our own struggles... and open our eyes to a hurting world... im sick of all the enlightenment... where we tell ourselves that the world is bright and green and wonderful...we work.. work out... listen to our IPods... watch Survivor... sip on wine... attend Christmas parties... swipe our debit cards... swipe... swipe... swipe... and we ignore the HUGE FLASHING SIGNS all around us... we tune out the injured... because we are BUSY....

slowwwww downnnnnn.......look around you... find the desperate eyes... and pleas that surround you... and give the best gift you can... to maybe... the undeserved......that is.... your time......

We only have one go around... we cannot hang up our uniforms... at the end of the day... and expect the dark streets at night to govern themselves.... a light is needed in a dark world... I am not being "emo"... it is reality... it is what the Jewish attorney did not want to hear... love your neighbor... anyone in need... like you love you..........

then.... and only then... will we ourselves be restored, find peace, flood the void... that every other vice and pleasure has ceased to fill

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