Jesus told a story: “A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road. “By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. “Then a Samaritan (whom the Jews despised) came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the Jew on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’ “Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked. The Bible scholar replied, “The one who showed him mercy.” Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.”
Love thy neighbor as thyself, including:
- the one across the street with the incessantly barking dog
- the ones that barrels down my street as if they're on a drag strip
- my self-centered coworkers with a poor work ethic
- the less than caring customer service rep that did not resolve my problem
- the lazy courier who did not properly deliver my packages
- the family member who would not receive my gift
- the friend who tried to talk me into doing what I didn't want to do
- the homeless man who will not work but waits on the street corner for me to come by
Heavenly Father,
Help me to live a life of love for You, with all of my heart, and love for my neighbor as myself, whoever that neighbor might happen to be. I cannot do this on my own but in You I am strong and able to pull off anything. You enable me to do exceedingly, and abundantly, far over and beyond what I can do in my own strength and willpower. When people are not nice, I ask You to help me love them anyways. When people are being inconsiderate, let Your love for them shine through me, and help me to let my guard down so that You may shine even brighter. Let Your love in me, hide the faults in them. Let me be an example to the believer and to the unbeliever in word, in conduct, in faith, in purity, and in love. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.
