Let's Have Coffee with Susan Donaldson.
I just discovered this Thursday meme this afternoon, (Wednesday)
Susan's blog Welcome Hearts is a blessed site that encourages us to be more open to others and share with other women! It is a site that honors hospitality and encourages women to step out and involve yourself with others.. to the glory of God ... I love this!
In today's post she encourages having our neighbors in for coffee. I, like probably many, do not know my neighbors well..and honestly I have tried to be a good neighbor. I have taken baked items to one neighbor .. she is much younger with children and she is a busy homemaker and journalist, so I am daunted by her busy-ness.. My other neighbor on the other side- we have reached out and had them for supper, for dessert, but it just doesn't seem to click... He is retired, but she still works and gets home late every day. I am daunted by their lack of interest.
Then there are two neighbors behind us. One family has two very active teens and they are always on the go. I haven't done anything about them except wave, and hubs has spoken to him about yard/grass issues. Not much interest there..The other back neighbor is a single man of middle age, who keeps to himself quite a bit. So it is easy to just say to yourself, it just doesn't work for us to be hospitable to our neighbors, but that is a cop out.. and I know it! And mainly because we see very little evidence that any of these folks have a relationship with the Lord.. I know it is hard to make that judgment, but based on appearances we just do not see them going to church, etc. So what would Jesus do!
He would love them enough to do something, even if it was wrong. Of course, he wouldn't be wrong, but I need to have that mind set!
First of all, I need to love them.. I need to pray to the Lord to strengthen my resolve to be bold in loving people more, and to forgive me if I harbor any foul spirit in me that keeps me from loving others!
Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. I Jn 4:8
Even as I am creating this post
I feel the Spirit urging me to do something I thought of when I received a Christmas card last month. A good friend told me in her card "We look forward to the New Year even though I have a couple of concerns".. My Spirit told me then, 'Oh my, take her to coffee and ask her if there was anything I could pray for her or her family." I mean that comment sounded like a plea for me to at least ask her about it. So I am purposing in my life to do just that.. Call my friend and invite her out for coffee at our new coffee house nearby.. just to chat and show her that I love her in Christ! I feel better already just in pledging within my self to do this!
