JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Relationship-Building Principle comes from Proverbs 14:21.

“He who despises his neighbor sins, but blessed is he who is kind to the needy.”

To despise our neighbor would violate the second greatest commandment in all of Scripture, which is to love our neighbor as ourselves. God calls His people to live with neighborly love-the kind that seeks God’s blessing on their lives and treats them with respect and consideration. Building relationships with our neighbors is a significant step to demonstrating the love of Jesus to them. Our neighbor might be considered the family that lives next to us, but they also might be whoever happens to be next to us at a given time.

A blessing is granted from the Lord for the person who is kind to the needy. We have opportunity to do this in various ways. Proverbs 22:9 talks about the generous man sharing his food with the poor. Proverbs 31:9 promotes defending the rights of the poor. Psalm 15:5 promotes lending to the poor without charging excessive interest. The general idea is to be openhanded and not tightfisted toward the poor.

Loving our neighbors and being kind to the needy are vital relationship-building principles to take to heart in the Year of Connection.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com