Written by Guest Contributor, Brian Zielke | March 17, 2022
Love your neighbor as yourself. According to Jesus, this is one of the most important things in life. It’s a central message of Jesus and the whole Bible, really. In fact, when pressed about the greatest commandment in the Law (Matthew 22:35-40), Jesus answered, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” That’s at the top of the list. And right along with that, going hand-in-hand, is “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus said, “All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” In other words, they sum it all up. Everything in the Law fits under these two things, love God and love your neighbor.
This sounds simple and sometimes it is, but it can also be quite complicated and difficult to do. To illustrate, I want to tell you a tale of two lawns. One day I noticed my neighbor’s grass was getting kind of long. I hadn’t seen them in a while. I figured they were busy, so I took it upon myself to mow their lawn. They didn’t ask me to, I just did it. The next time I saw them, they thanked me, telling me that they hadn’t been home much because of a recent death in their family. They appreciated my act of service.
Another time, I noticed the grass was getting long in my other neighbor’s yard, so once again assuming I was helping her out, I went ahead and cut her grass. However, this time it was not met with appreciation. She was courteous, but she asked me not to mow her lawn for her. She informed me that she liked it long and that she would take care of it herself. My generosity backfired.
One neighbor appreciated me mowing their lawn, another neighbor didn’t. Why? I wanted to help them. I had good intentions. But in taking action, I assumed that I knew their needs. I was wrong. No two neighbors are the same, and therefore the way we show love to our neighbors cannot always look the same either. If we want to love our neighbor as ourselves, we need to know our neighbor first. As we get to know our neighbors, their individual needs will rise to the surface, and we’ll gain more clarity on how to meet their needs with love.
Through this experience I learned that I shouldn’t make assumptions about my neighbors’ needs and how I can help them. Good intentions are not enough. When generosity backfires, learn from it. Show humility. Don’t let your pride take over. Don’t focus on the “good” you think you did or what you think you deserve in return. Admit your error and rebuild the relationship. By doing so, you’ll be reflecting the grace of God, which is another way of being generous. And guess what, God will open other opportunities to love your neighbor! My neighbor didn’t want me to mow her lawn, but when she had a mouse caught in a trap, guess who she called to help dispose of it?
Photo Credit: Daniel Watson
Bio:
Brian Zielke lives in Elburn, Illinois, with his wife Emily and four kids (ages 4-11). He serves as the Director of Discipleship at Lord of Life Church in Elburn, working primarily with kids, youth and their families. When not discipling others in church he can be seen on the roads as a school bus driver for the local school district. Brian enjoys playing guitar, singing, reading (especially books by the Inklings, J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis), cooking, playing outside with his kids, mowing his neighbor’s lawn and trying to fix things.
