Getting Dirt from Your Neighbours

Getting Dirt from Your Neighbours

We have a large fenced-in yard at the back of our house, perfect for grandchildren to play in, with a patio for entertaining friends and family. The only problem is that it slopes toward the house and becomes a lake when it rains. Water leaked under the house and seeped through the floorboards.

The only real solution was to get a lot of dirt to fill it in and level it off. The cost of trucking it in was just too much for a “retired” couple to afford, till a miracle happened. A friend had the opposite problem in their back yard. They had to get rid of tons of dirt. When we realised we each had the solution to the other’s problem it was some relief.

When the man brought over the first load and saw how large our problem was, he said, “When I first heard you needed our dirt I worried we had too much, and you would not be able to take all we have to give. I think, however, you may be able to take it all.”

I said, “I’ll take all the dirt you can give me.”

I am sure a lesson of neighbourliness can be drawn from this, but I thought it could give us insight of how to deal with a much more serious issue in our lives.

What if our neighbours are throwing a different kind of dirt at us? What if someone is trying to destroy your reputation? What if a neighbour has a dispute with you and is refusing to reconcile your differences? I don’t need to list all of issues that could arise in our contact with people, both at work and at home.

The question is, “How much dirt can you take before you blow up and react in kind? How much capacity do you have to keep letting someone keep throwing dirt at you, without throwing it back at them with just as much venom as they are giving you.”

This is where the rubber meets the road.  We can talk about following our Lord, but how are we going to learn how to follow in His footsteps? How can we follow His example and take all the dirt people can throw at us, and not throw it back?

For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, ²² who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; ²³ and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously…” (1 Peter 2:21-23 – NASB)

The secret of learning to do what Jesus did is right before us. How did Jesus do it? He kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously.

What to do with the Dirt

(© Sunday 12^th April 2015 – by Christopher Shennan)

[Jesus]…while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously…” (1 Peter 2:23 – NASB)

So much dirt of the nasty kind

Just kept on coming my way;

Neighbours and friends and folks at work.

Always had things nasty to say.

Sometimes they liked to criticize,

At others, just and unkind word;

At other times a word of blame

Seemed to cut me – just like a sword.

This load of dirt kept piling up,

And crushing me under its power;

I felt like hurling it back at them,

And cause their spirits to cower.

Then I thought of my risen Lord;

When reviled he reviled not again.

He uttered no threats, bur trusted

His Father in Heaven – no blame.

I thought I would try His method,

And take all the dirt they could give,

Then pass it along to my Saviour;

Found it’s the only way to live.

I just keep on trusting my Lord

To take all the dirt they throw;

He knows where to put it, and I

Just praise Him wherever I go.

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Dirt Pile by Ichor202. Copyright. Used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; please note the Disclaimer at this link. We have made no changes to this photograph.