Day 9: Won't You Be My Neighbor

Focus Area - REACH OUT
Stretching Toward Others

Scriptures: Luke 10:25-37 (NIV)

Reflection: Love becomes real when it slows down, crosses the street, and gets its hands dirty.

Expanded Focus:
I grew up watching Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood. Every episode began the same: Fred Rogers would walk in, change his shoes, put on a sweater, and sing, “Won’t you be my neighbor?” As a child, it seemed like a simple song. As an adult, I realized he was planting something deeper. He slowed life enough to make kindness normal. He taught us to notice others, care, listen, and believe our presence could lift someone’s day.

Somewhere between childhood and adulthood, that simple invitation grew complicated. We became busy. We grew guarded. We became careful with our time. Many of us love the idea of loving our neighbor more than we love the real love’s interruptions.

That tension is exactly where Jesus places this parable. A religious expert asks a religious question, “Who is my neighbor?” Jesus does not respond with a definition; He responds with a story. A man is beaten, stripped, and left half dead. A priest sees him and moves to the other side. A Levite sees him and does the same. Both are religious, both are knowledgeable, both are busy, but neither becomes a neighbor.

Then comes the Samaritan, the one least expected to be the hero. He sees the man, he feels compassion, and then he moves toward him. He treats wounds, uses his own supplies, places the man on his own animal, and promises ongoing care. The Samaritan does not ask, “What will happen to me if I stop?” He lives with the burden-filled question, “What will happen to him if I don’t?”

Loving your neighbor will not always fit neatly into your day. It may disrupt your plans, alter your schedule, redirect your spending, or strain your emotions. But this is where fasting becomes more than a dietary discipline. This is where it becomes discipleship. The question isn’t “Who is my neighbor?” but “Will I be a neighbor when God places need before me?”

Questions to Consider:

1. Where is God inviting you to slow down so you can actually see the people around you?
2. What makes it challenging for you to offer compassion when it is not convenient?
3. How is God stretching your definition of who counts as a neighbor?