Proximity does not equal community.

I came across that quote from Ed Stetzer & immediately thought about it in context of neighbourhood.

My first response was, "Yes, especially if you don't try."

Another commentator mentioned, "And distance does not equal a lack of community."

YIKES!! That's exactly the thinking that has helped so many Christian people jettison the idea that we need to love our actual neighbours & live in community with them.

PT Barnum once quipped, "No one has ever gone broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people."

I think that comment could be extended to include us Canadians as well, especially around the idea making it a priority to 'love your neighbourhood.'

What Stetzer was emphasizing was the need for "Relational intentionality" in church-based small groups.

Relational intentionality is a very good thing, & is a hall mark of the life & ministry of Jesus. And Jesus has passed that along to us.

What if those in churches focused a little more on relational intentionality with their neighbours?

What would be different in your life if you made loving your neighbours a priority?

What would it look like in my life to more fully embrace the Greatest Commandment?

Matthew 22:37-40
Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’