We Don’t Need Our Neighbors Anymore
About a month ago, Hurricane Sally ripped through Pensacola, FL contributing to a record setting hurricane season. Now, I’m from Houston, so I’m no stranger to a storm and the utter heartbreak and loss that is caused by natural disasters. Over the last 5 years, I have personally experienced on separate occasions the sheer terror they inflict with their loud winds and rising waters, sifted through what was left of my possessions after 8 inches of water flooded my own home, and been stranded unable to reach my neighborhood for a few days watching through tears the news showing the devastation throughout my city.
So I definitely surprised myself a few weeks ago when I actually said out loud the words, “Thank God for hurricanes.” I immediately felt ashamed for saying it as I do not believe God directly causes or sends hurricanes, and I certainly do not pray for them nor wish them upon anyone. But for some reason I still find myself grateful that God has allowed me to experience the opportunities granted in the aftermath. If I was completely honest, some of the best experiences of my life followed the terror, the flooding, and the devastation described above because that’s when you see human nature at its best and what God can do when all you have to hold on to is trust that he is a provider. Not much has revealed to me God’s character like friends and strangers covered in sheetrock dust, drenched in the smell of mildew, driving cars loaded to the brim with donations and supplies.
So a month ago, after I sat awake all night scared and waiting for Hurricane Sally to rip open our home in Pensacola (thankfully, it did not), the rain stopped, the wind died down, and I looked across the street at my neighbors house remembering the opportunity that always follows a storm. It was now time to participate in God’s provision.
We got to work organizing a few folks, clearing debris from yards, and mucking out homes. After a few days of this, I was trying to describe to a friend my joy in meeting more of my neighbors along with my disappointment in myself that it took a hurricane to introduce me to some of them. He said, “I don’t think we meet our neighbors anymore because we don’t need to, we don’t need them.”
I immediately was brought back to my freshman scripture class in high school when we learned about the Beatitudes. Our teacher had explained “Blessed are the poor in spirit…” because in order to survive, they depend on one another and on God. We have become so self-reliant and self-sufficient that we are losing the gift and joy of dependency and trust. The early church lived as Acts 4:32-35 describes: They held everything in common and not a needy one was among them. What is preventing us from this kind of church? I think we can easily let circumstances and dependence on our own ability and strength to distract us from who God is, what He is capable of, and what He has promised.
If God says blessed are those who are in need, then I pray that God ruins any plans I create that have me depending on myself more than on Him. I pray that I can see every loss as an opportunity to grow in trust. And I pray that I am more aware of my own weakness and need for help from Him and my neighbor.