Every person is a neighbour, help when they are in need

Ted Makongo is an angry man. He’s seething with rage because a neighbour he had come to adopt as his friend; someone he freely welcomed in his house, a person that they shared everything with, turned around to betray his trust. Things have been disappearing in his house, but never for one moment did he think that his neighbour coulld be responsible for such until one day he caught him red-handed stealing his mobile phone. Ted was crushed, and even though he forgave him as a Christian, forgetting that act of betrayal has been difficult for him. What happens when the person that we trust betrays our trust? How should we live with our neighbours, even though some might turn around to hurt us? What do the Scripture say about good neighbours? There are several verses in the Bible that talk about good neighbours. Luke 10:27 says, “And he (Jesus) answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with your entire mind, and your neighbour as yourself.” While Galatians 5:14 says, “For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” If we live according to what the scripture decrees, then each one of us shouldn’t have problems with their neighbours. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. You neighbour can laugh with you, but deep inside their heart, they carry hatred and jealousy. It’s documented that during the Genocide against the Tutsi, neighbours that had lived side by side for several years and generations, neighbours whose children played together, neighbours that borrowed salt from one another suddenly found out that they were not cut from the same cloth and unleashed terror on others. However, once in a while you get a wonderful example of a Good Samaritan. There are heartwarming stories of some good neighbours who inspires us to be like them. These are the neighbours who are there for one another when sickness, and even worse, death strikes. They will be there for you both spiritually and financially. But today, people are so self-absorbed to care for one another. “People are so busy with their own lives. They are not concerned with the tribulations of their neighbours and others,” says Jean Pierre Baptiste, a Christian in Kimihurura. He advises that we should follow the famous story of the Good Samaritan, adding, “Anyone and everyone is our neighbour. Thus we should treat everyone the way we also want to be treated.” He says,” All of us, at one time or another, have been in need of someone else’s help. And when we were in that situation, we wanted help. Perhaps we were too proud to ask for it, but we knew we needed help. And when someone did come and helped, we were grateful.” According to an article appearing in Bible Study Guides, “Loving your neighbor as yourself is the second great commandment. Christ says we are to treat others the way we want to be treated. When dealing with people, we need to stop and think how we would want to be treated, and then treat them that way. The last six of the Ten Commandments are summarized in this second great commandment.” Jean Pierre Baptsite says that human beings need to be humble to be good neighbours. “We can’t afford to be selfish. We should think about others and their needs. We are going to help others when our minds are focused on others, not just on ourselves.