Taking the Time to Make a Difference

A volunteer went out into the neighborhood to deliver some invitations to a meeting. Some doors were open. Some were not. Some people listened. Some did not.

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A few weeks ago, I went out into my neighborhood to invite people to a meeting of our neighborhood association. We meet once a month to talk about matters of mutual interest – such as any report of burglary or vandalism. Meetings may include speakers on a variety of topics: tornado preparedness, the upcoming census or tree-trimming ideas. Or we might plan a holiday party. The association is not so much built on a “crime watch” basis, but more on a common desire to get to know each other better, a community building basis. Our designated territory includes people who live on either side of three streets, several blocks long. Although it looks like a very small area, there are well over 100 homes in this neighborhood. We made some letter-sized flyers with basic information – the time and place of the next meeting, an invitation to “Get to know your neighbors” in large type, and a summary of what we did at the last meeting.

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I couldn’t help but think of the parable Jesus told, about the sower and the seeds. If a house was dark and quiet, I left a flyer under the storm door or in some other noticeable place. I may never know if the residents found it, read it, or reacted in any way to it. If a house seemed active, I knocked on the door or rang the bell, and waited for a response. Some folks came to the door. Some did not — even though the lights of the living room and the sound of the television set seemed to indicate they were at home. Some who came to the door were already friends or acquaintances. Two friends invited me in for a cold drink on a hot Sunday afternoon. Some were strangers. Some recognized me from our nearby parish church. Some people showed no interest. Others had obligations on the Thursday night when our meeting was scheduled. Most were polite; there was only one exception. One man glanced for a split second through the screen door at the flyer in my hand and told me, “I already have plenty of them,” and then slammed the heavy wooden door in my face.

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As I write these words, I must tell you that our neighborhood meeting took place on a recent Thursday evening – and none of the people I invited came to join our small group of regulars. Not a one. Did I fail? I met several dozen people in my neighborhood face to face. I told them that what happened to anyone in the neighborhood was a matter of importance to all of us. I invited them into a community. If I were to compare what I did to the parable of the sower and the seeds, I would have to say that the seed is still in the ground, and that germination may yet be the result. Maybe next month.

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It’s hard to trust winter and hope for spring. It’s hard to plant a seed and not know if life will erupt. It’s hard to have a door close in your face — but even harder to hear a promise to respond to an invitation, a promise that proves empty, when “Yes, I will” turns into “Something else is more important.”

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Take the time today to examine the invitations you have received – to family, to church, to neighborhood, to society. What has been your response? Take the time to pray for persistence – as a parent or a spouse or a neighbor – to continue to say to another, “Please join me.

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