I placed the five loaves of specialty bread in the brown paper sacks with the five personalized cards to match.
This is a great idea.
With my introverted housemate, Mary, in tow we crossed the street. Twenty feet began to feel like a mile as I grew fearful. I couldn’t help but think of how appropriate the comparison would be of her and I to the Chicken that crossed the road in the well known joke. Why did we two chickens cross the road? To reach our neighbors during a pandemic…
This is an okay idea.
I rang my neighbor’s doorbell and stepped six feet away from the door.
This is a terrible idea. Is it too late to run home?
As I waited for someone to come to the door, two scenarios ran through my mind. The first contained visions of screaming and the cops being called. The second consisted of a grateful smile and an invitation to dinner.
At this point in the pandemic quarantine, I’ve been told a million and one times that this is the perfect opportunity to reach my neighbors. And for every time I’ve been told that, I’ve also read a blog, heard a podcast, or had a devotional that elaborated on the topic. I finally decided to act on it. Getting the small, five loaves of specialty bread together was the easiest part. It was this post-doorbell-ring-wait-for-an-eternity moment that was the hardest.
The first neighbor interaction was rocky. She barely cracked the door open as she peered out at my housemate and I. That’s it, I thought, she’s the one that’s going to call the cops. “Hi, I’m Hannah”, I interrupted my own analysis paralysis, “and this is my housemate, Mary. We live right over there and just wanted to give you this little loaf of bread and let you know that we’re here if you need anything at all.” She reached around the door and accepted the loaf with a surprised smile. We talked for a moment before she retreated back inside, and we progressed to the next neighbor’s house.
Each interaction got better and better with each neighbor. Mary eventually began joining me at the door, and I eventually began to actually enjoy it. While we might have started as two chickens crossing the road, we concluded with empty hands and full hearts.
Later, we even received some homemade jelly from one neighbor. Another neighbor gave us a hand written thank you note letting us know that she split her loaf with an elderly neighbor of her own. Having exchanged numbers with several of them, we continue to be in contact with each other. I find excitement thinking about what the Lord might do through those now open doors.
I can’t help but think of the story of Jesus feeding the five-thousand in Matthew 14. He was able to take the small offering of five loaves and two fish and make it into something amazing. I guess now my prayer is that the Lord will bring salvation miracles to my neighborhood kind of like the crowd in Scripture… only this time it will have been through five loaves of bread and the two chickens that crossed the road.
Questions to Consider:
What is a creative way that I can get to know my neighbors?
What excuses have I been using to avoid advancing the Gospel on my own block?
Do I believe that God can do a lot with the little I have?
Meet the Author!
Hannah Hanzel is an opinionated, passionate gal that loves sharing what God is doing in her often busy and complicated life. She strives to show God's glory in working as the Art Director for the Baptist Messenger, serving as a multi-client freelance graphic designer, and communing with CRBC. When she's not working, you can find her sipping coffee in a hammock, watching classic '40s movies, or going on an adventure with friends or family.
