[Agape] Loving Your Community

It has been said, and sung, that “where you invest your love, you invest your life.” But, what if we reverse that statement? Does it hold the same weight when we say, “where you invest your life, you invest your love.” What is the significance about where we choose to invest our lives? We all have a community or various communities that we belong to. Some of us have had multiple communities in multiple places that we have lived in and traveled to over the course of our lives. Others of us have had one single or immediate community that we have called our home for most of our lives. Still, while some of us have conscientiously chosen the communities we wished to be a part of and invest our lives in, others of us have been led away from our immediate communities to new and unfamiliar communities that we would soon call our permanent homes. But, the love we show to our communities and the relationships we build within those communities should remain the same whether or not we have willingly chosen those communities we are a part of. Regardless of what has led us to where we are today, and what has led us to call these places our homes, we must make a conscious effort to invest our love and lives into the communities that surround us.They say, “Good fences make good neighbors,” but have these physical fences that we have automatically put up transpired to creating emotional or intellectual boundaries that we have set with our neighbors? How well do we know our neighbors? Do we know what goes on in their daily lives? Do we know where they work, if they have children, what brought them here, or what they enjoy to do? Frankly, it is impractical to know everything about all of your neighbors, but it is more than practical to begin saying hello to your neighbors, to start asking them about their days, or to even invite them to dinner. It is more than practical to begin fostering relationships with your neighbors. We have been placed in our communities for a distinct purpose to invest in those communities. So, whether we have delightedly chosen our communities or we have reluctantly stayed in our communities, we have a purpose to invest in the growth of our communities. More than that, we have a purpose to love those people who are joining alongside us in growing our communities. When we change our perspective on our communities, we realize the importance of investing in the lives of those who make up our community. Our neighbors, then, become more than people who we cross paths with each morning while we rush off to work. They become more than people we see driving down the street, walking their dogs, or playing with their kids outside. They become more than people we call when they play their music too loud late at night or when it seems like they are performing a tap routine on the floors of their upper-story apartments. When we realize the importance of investing in the relationships we form with our neighbors, we begin to slowly tear down emotional or intellectual fences we have unknowingly built up between ourselves and these familiar strangers. When we begin to invest in the lives of those around us, the way in which we connect to the world becomes more intertwined. When the authenticity of our relationships grows with each intentional bond we form with our neighbors, we allow that same authenticity to carry out into the relationships we form outside of our immediate communities.When we begin to intentionally invest in the relationships with our neighbors, we will be more apt in investing in our cities. In the same way that we have purpose in our communities, we have a distinct purpose in our cities. Whether we are politically, culturally, artistically, intellectually, spiritually, or socially investing in our cities, we should not only know that we have influence in our cities, but we should believe in our influence. Furthermore, we must start acting out of our influence. For example, it is no concealed fact that local and city elections tend to have the least voter turnout among the various governmental elections, but it is a troublesome fact, nonetheless. If we have the most significant influence in the matters of our cities compared to the matters of our states or of our nation as a whole, then we should use our voices, talents, and passions to invest in our cities. We should also be aware of what is going on in our cities: things our city is thriving in, areas of need, and how our cities are being led. Once we are aware of the circumstances of our cities, we will begin to use our influence and our talents to contribute to the work of our cities. Whether by our own will or by the will of others, we have been placed in our cities for a specific purpose. We each have the capacity to love our cities through our talents, through our ambitions, through our passions, and through our inclinations in order to watch it grow.So, let us love on our neighbors and let us invest in the growth of our communities. Let us believe in where our lives have guided us and let us use our strengths and talents to impact the various communities we have become a part of. For, where we invest our lives, we invest our love.