My Neighbors Are Moving

My neighbors are moving away. So are my friends. And, the same with my colleague. They aren’t leaving because they want to get away from me or Sturgeon Bay. They’re leaving because God is calling them to something different, and my brain can handle that. The rest of me is struggling.

When my own family moved from Minnesota 5 years ago, to join the community of Sturgeon Bay, we really wanted to do the “neighborhood” thing differently. We hadn’t gotten to know our neighbors very well. We didn’t hang out unless we threw a Frisbee into their gardens, or ran over a rail spike (our back yards ended at the railroad tracks) while mowing the lawn, shooting it 25 feet into their decks. We made a commitment to do better in our new community.

As a pastor, I know God may lead me on a path that is difficult to follow. Ministry can be tough; the people, finances and political landscape can be tricky to navigate. But, regardless of where or when, we are called to live fully – in the place, and with the people. By not getting to know my neighbors, I felt like I wasn’t as fully invested as I could have been, even though we were never hoping or looking to leave the place.

So, we moved into a home that needed some work. We also got down to doing the work of getting acquainted with our neighbors – the Thomas, Kruegers, Brillas, Wodacks, Blackleys, Wecklers, Shortreeds and Pfannenstiels…along with Rene (pronounced Ree-nee) and Phil are all friends we wave at, talk with, borrow from and lend to. We share food, pet-sit, and shovel snow for one another. So, as we got to know our new house, and that it actually needed more work than we thought, we kept saying “at least we have great neighbors.”

We still do and will say that, but when the Enger Family leaves the neighborhood, there will be an empty space in our subdivision, and a hole in our hearts that truly long to just pop outside and see these people we’ve come to like, love and trust over the past 5 years. The easier thing would’ve been to not even make our hearts available for such a hurt. It would’ve been easier to just be waving-friends and not chicken-owning friends. It’d be easier right now, instead of crying and grieving, to have just kept it cordial. But, that couldn’t be further from the calling that God has for us – not just pastors, and, not just as Christians – but, as human beings.

We’re called to love, knowing it increases the likelihood of being hurt. We’re called to give, knowing we may not be paid back. We’re called to care, knowing it might not be reciprocated.  This is not only the life we have, but also the way to truly be alive – experiencing the fullness of humanity with other humans, and walking humbly with our God.

God was willing to be hurt. He created beings who had a will to choose their own way.
God is willing to love. He laid down His own life in a selfless act of grace.
God is willing to share. He gives His Spirit liberally and freely.

The Godly life, then, experiences these same things. It’s not without risk. It’s also not without reward. The Engers are life-long friends, who have helped us learn better how to love our literal neighbor.

Just so you know, my brain is okay with all of this. The rest of me is crying. And, that’s okay, too.

Pastor James Gomez, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Sturgeon Bay