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April 07, 2005
Who's my neighbor?
God says, "Love your neighbor." That's not just the person next door but everyone we come into contact with. That's difficult because of the way some people treat us. And when God says, "As yourself," it's treating others the way we'd like to be treated, especially when we are mistreated.
Posted by carl1236 at April 7, 2005 05:56 PM | Love your Neighbor
Comments
As a tangent to your post, one of my favorite things about the golden rule is how it can be applied backwards. If you assume people generally treat you the way they want you to treat them, then you know how they want to be treated by how they're treating you.
Mind-boggling, I know. ;)
Posted by: nathan at April 8, 2005 10:03 AM
yeah, Nathan, it could work that way, but some people are destructive towards other people because of their attitudes/motives and treat others poorly or take advantage of them. That doesn't mean they want to be treated that way and that doesn't mean that's the way we should respond to them. Sometimes the hardest thing to do is respond or treat someone in a way that reflects who we are and not who they are. I'm still working on this myself, for instance, I love it when people remember my name when they see me again. It shows they recognize me. But I have been terrible about names, and now I try harder to remember and get names down the first time I meet someone. It's a good way to show respect for the other person.
In other cases, I have become angry and lost my temper, for instance in arguments with my wife in the past and have said hurtful things I didn't really mean to say. In conflict situations I've found it better to remain calm and get to the root of the problem and validate the other person's feelings. That's what I'd like others to do for me also If I have a problem.
Let's say I have a defective product and I go to a store to return it and they give me a hard time about it. I don't like people yelling at me, so I try not to yell or lose my patience. I remember the product is not the fault of the salesperson. They're just doing their jobs. If they yell at me, I don't think they really want to do that, they just don't know how to deal with the emotions they are feeling, and probably don't want me yelling back.
Hey, by the way, I was happy to see you the other night at the Sibley Bike Depot. It sounded like you volunteered there many times last year and it looked like you had a lot of bike experience. You whipped that bike together in no time. My first exposure to all of this was in January when I took that studded-tire-making class there. Then once they started having volunteer night again this spring, I started going there. I still have a lot to learn about bike repair though, haha. Now I can change a bottom bracket though!
See you around again.
Posted by: John at April 8, 2005 11:47 AM
I like your web site. What else did god say?
Posted by: choo at April 13, 2005 11:02 AM
I always tried to love one another but that person end up being a jackass. How can you have one love for another if they don't have one for you? God told me to always respect others. I know SANTAN IS TAKING OVER BUT YOU CAN'T LET HIM WIN! he will test you in any way he can and see how loyal you are to GOD. I think GOD is having the ARMAGADDON. The Evil One Will be Destory.
Posted by: choo at April 13, 2005 11:09 AM
Think of it this way Choo, We talk about the Spirit of God living in us, or being guided by the Holy Spirit, being one in the spirit, one in the Lord, being a servant of God, etc. This is considered the best way to live our lives, but even good intentioned people can develop poisoned hearts by being greedy, selfish, not using the same unconditional love that God is, etc. They are still people deserving of God's love and guidance, but they are listening to another spirit: That of greed, selfishness, unloving, etc. often without realizing they are doing it. This is a real example of Satan living in high places. The Highest place is in our hearts. When we claim to be Christians and we do not have loving hearts, we had better not be worried about other's hearts, or Armageddon, because we are the spirit of the Anti-Christ. We should not be deceived by the spirit of the uncompassionate. We will destroy the world if the God of Love doesn't intervene. Many will be surprised they are on the wrong side of the fence. How can we have love for another if they don't have love for us? God answers, "What are you being if you do not?"
Posted by: John at April 14, 2005 10:19 PM