BBD 08.19.14 The Neighbors (New)

#1 · August 19, 2014, 1:27 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on August 19, 2014, 1:27 pm
Posted by: theburningbushdevotional <theburningbushdevotional@...>

If for
some reason you do not receive your email version of the devotional please
check the Burning Bush website at www.theburningbush.net for the “Devotional of the Day” and read the devotional there.

The Burning
Bush Devotional

08.19.14

The Neighbors

You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you
shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female
servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s. –
Exodus 20:17 NKJV.

But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees,
they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question,
testing Him, and saying, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”
Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord
your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your
mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You
shall love your neighbor as yourself.’On these two
commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” – Matthew 22: 34-40 NKJV.

If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You
shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well. – James 2:8 NKJV.

In the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
there has been a study published about the effect of your neighbors on your
health by the University of Michigan researchers. Researchers say that, “Having good neighbors
and feeling connected to others in the local community may help to curb an
individual’s heart attack risk.” It does make sense that good neighbors provide a lower
level of stress as compared to having bad neighbors contributing to a higher
stress level. Participants in the study were asked to award points to reflect “the extent to which they felt part of their
neighborhood, could rely on their neighbors in a pinch, could trust their
neighbors, and found their neighbors to be friendly.” Over a four year
period, it was found that for every point they gave for these things it
resulted in a lower risk of heart attack. Those people who gave their neighbors
the highest possible positive score reduced their heart attack risk by 67%. A co-author of the
study, Eric Kim said that this was significant and, “approximately comparable to the reduced heart attack
risk of a smoker vs a non-smoker.”

We have been blessed
over the years to have great neighbors who have been very kind. Not everyone lives in
areas like that and in addition, they are unable to move anywhere else. Right
now in the United States to actually be living in a neighborhood near Ferguson,
Missouri where there has been rioting and looting would be very stressful. In
Chicago, there are neighborhoods where violence has been severe. Even though,
Chicago has strict gun laws they have the highest rate of gun-related violence.
Most of us have not had to deal with the threat of violence directed toward us
from those living around us. I cannot wrap my mind around the kind of stress
that people living in the Middle East are experiencing. Israel, Gaza, Syria,
and Iraq must be some of the more stressful “neighborhoods” to live in.

One of my friends from facebook shared this
about her neighbors, “When my
daughter was in the hospital, our neighbors were praying for her. They come
check on her sometimes.” This is what Jesus
would have us to do whether our neighbors are good ones or bad ones: pray for
them and do good to them. Jesus says in Matthew 5:43-45
NKJV, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate
your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do
good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and
persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His
sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the
unjust.” If we were to observe the “royal law”
of doing good to our neighbors and praying for them, the result may be that we
will have better neighbors. If we have better neighbors, we will have less
stress and a happier life. As we see the things that are happening across this
world the apostle Peter has an appropriate word for us, “But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful
in your prayers (1 Peter 4:7).” Let us be serious about how we interact
with our neighbors and always be in prayer for them.

Copyright © 2014. Ed Wrather. The
Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998
the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed Wrather
began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of these first
devotionals was primarily through the Burning Bush Newsletter sent to prison
facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

Visit the
Burning Bush websites:

www.theburningbush.net

www.theburningbush.org

The Burning Bush websites have
received visits from more than 170 countries. Celebrating 15 years online since
January 31, 1998. Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush Devotional has been
spreading the truth of God's Word to more than 14,000 subscribers across the
world.

You can leave comments/feedback
about the devotionals at www.theburningbush.net.

There is a translation tool on
theburningbush.net website in the top left hand corner of all of the pages.

Ed Wrather has retired from
pastoring full-time and has more time to pursue other ministry opportunities.
You can make contact at edwrather@yahoo.com or theburningbushdevotional@gmail.com View LinkedIn profile with
endorsements at http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=92988105

Prayer Requests: Many prayer
needs are posted at the Burning Bush website on the Prayer Request page. You
can also post your prayer requests there (Of course, I am always in need of
prayer - please pray for me.).

If you enjoy the devotional
please recommend it to your friends. They may subscribe by sending a blank
email to burningbushdevo-join@welovegod.org

There is a complete devotional
archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/DevotionalArchive.html.

Devotion vs Devotional: We do our
devotions, we read devotionals.

You can unsubscribe to the
burningbushdevo devotional group by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org and then respond to the confirmation email.

You may subscribe to the html
text group (Because of time constraints the devotional is only being sent now
in html format) by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-join@welovegod.org
and you may unsubscribe by sending a blank email to
burningbushhtml-leave@welovegod.org and then respond to the confirmation email.
If the link does not work, copy and paste the link.

--

To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org

Posted by: theburningbushdevotional <theburningbushdevotional@...>

If for
some reason you do not receive your email version of the devotional please
check the Burning Bush website at http://www.theburningbush.net for the “Devotional of the Day” and read the devotional there.

The Burning
Bush Devotional

08.19.14

The Neighbors

You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you
shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female
servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s. –
Exodus 20:17 NKJV.

But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees,
they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question,
testing Him, and saying, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”
Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord
your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your
mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You
shall love your neighbor as yourself.’On these two
commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” – Matthew 22: 34-40 NKJV.

If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You
shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well. – James 2:8 NKJV.

In the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
there has been a study published about the effect of your neighbors on your
health by the University of Michigan researchers. Researchers say that, “Having good neighbors
and feeling connected to others in the local community may help to curb an
individual’s heart attack risk.” It does make sense that good neighbors provide a lower
level of stress as compared to having bad neighbors contributing to a higher
stress level. Participants in the study were asked to award points to reflect “the extent to which they felt part of their
neighborhood, could rely on their neighbors in a pinch, could trust their
neighbors, and found their neighbors to be friendly.” Over a four year
period, it was found that for every point they gave for these things it
resulted in a lower risk of heart attack. Those people who gave their neighbors
the highest possible positive score reduced their heart attack risk by 67%. A co-author of the
study, Eric Kim said that this was significant and, “approximately comparable to the reduced heart attack
risk of a smoker vs a non-smoker.”

We have been blessed
over the years to have great neighbors who have been very kind. Not everyone lives in
areas like that and in addition, they are unable to move anywhere else. Right
now in the United States to actually be living in a neighborhood near Ferguson,
Missouri where there has been rioting and looting would be very stressful. In
Chicago, there are neighborhoods where violence has been severe. Even though,
Chicago has strict gun laws they have the highest rate of gun-related violence.
Most of us have not had to deal with the threat of violence directed toward us
from those living around us. I cannot wrap my mind around the kind of stress
that people living in the Middle East are experiencing. Israel, Gaza, Syria,
and Iraq must be some of the more stressful “neighborhoods” to live in.

One of my friends from facebook shared this
about her neighbors, “When my
daughter was in the hospital, our neighbors were praying for her. They come
check on her sometimes.” This is what Jesus
would have us to do whether our neighbors are good ones or bad ones: pray for
them and do good to them. Jesus says in Matthew 5:43-45
NKJV, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate
your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do
good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and
persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His
sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the
unjust.” If we were to observe the “royal law”
of doing good to our neighbors and praying for them, the result may be that we
will have better neighbors. If we have better neighbors, we will have less
stress and a happier life. As we see the things that are happening across this
world the apostle Peter has an appropriate word for us, “But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful
in your prayers (1 Peter 4:7).” Let us be serious about how we interact
with our neighbors and always be in prayer for them.

Copyright © 2014. Ed Wrather. The
Burning Bush website has been online since January 31, 1998. On June 8, 1998
the email version of the Burning Bush Devotional was first sent. Ed Wrather
began writing devotionals in the early 1990s. The distribution of these first
devotionals was primarily through the Burning Bush Newsletter sent to prison
facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

Visit the
Burning Bush websites:

http://www.theburningbush.net

http://www.theburningbush.org

The Burning Bush websites have
received visits from more than 170 countries. Celebrating 15 years online since
January 31, 1998. Since June 8, 1998 the Burning Bush Devotional has been
spreading the truth of God's Word to more than 14,000 subscribers across the
world.

You can leave comments/feedback
about the devotionals at http://www.theburningbush.net.

There is a translation tool on
theburningbush.net website in the top left hand corner of all of the pages.

Ed Wrather has retired from
pastoring full-time and has more time to pursue other ministry opportunities.
You can make contact at edwrather@yahoo.com or theburningbushdevotional@gmail.com View LinkedIn profile with
endorsements at http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=92988105

Prayer Requests: Many prayer
needs are posted at the Burning Bush website on the Prayer Request page. You
can also post your prayer requests there (Of course, I am always in need of
prayer - please pray for me.).

If you enjoy the devotional
please recommend it to your friends. They may subscribe by sending a blank
email to burningbushdevo-join@welovegod.org

There is a complete devotional
archive at the old Burning Bush website. Here is the URL: http://www.theburningbush.org/DevotionalArchive.html.

Devotion vs Devotional: We do our
devotions, we read devotionals.

You can unsubscribe to the
burningbushdevo devotional group by sending a blank email to
burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org and then respond to the confirmation email.

You may subscribe to the html
text group (Because of time constraints the devotional is only being sent now
in html format) by sending a blank email to burningbushhtml-join@welovegod.org
and you may unsubscribe by sending a blank email to
burningbushhtml-leave@welovegod.org and then respond to the confirmation email.
If the link does not work, copy and paste the link.

To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: burningbushdevo-leave@welovegod.org