Download “Neighboring Ideas for Churches“
You can encourage and help your church become more connected and involved in your community with simple steps. Individuals, small groups, and congregations can effectively use these steps and have an impactful presence in your neighborhood and community.
Pray
- Pray for God to create opportunities to talk with your neighbors.
- Prayer walk your neighborhood
- Pray specifically for others in the neighborhood
- Pray for grace when neighbors’ lifestyle choices and actions differ from yours.
Be With Your Neighbors
- Be Jesus in your neighborhood: Be friendly, be kind, be thoughtful, be engaging.
- Create space in your life so you don’t miss opportunities to be with neighbors.
- Attend social gatherings in the neighborhood.
- Get to know and understand the stories of your neighbors and community.
- Be available to neighbors. Walk with others, have meals together, visit the playground with your children, etc.
- Offer help to neighbors with yard work or shoveling snow. Don’t wait for an invitation to help them.
Compassion and Care
- Celebrate neighbors’ life events: births, graduations, promotions, new jobs, etc.
- Console and support when there is an illness or a death.
- Welcome new people to the neighborhood and bless people moving to another area.
- Love your neighbor. Share God’s love. Please don’t make it your plan to fix people.
Share the Journey
- Bring other disciples along with you. Others can encourage you when you are discouraged, offer insight when struggling, and celebrate occurrences of transformation.