Praying for your neighborhood: those who live next to you
You live somewhere, surrounded by dozens of families of whom you may know only a few. They are your neighbors, whether you chose them or not. This quest offers you a prayer at your doorstep: praying for those who live around you.
What it looks like in your day
You can pray for your neighborhood at home, from your window, or while taking a few steps. A few simple ways:
- From your window or balcony. Look at the buildings or houses around you, and pray: “Lord, bless the people who live behind these windows.”
- Door by door. On your landing or in your street, think of the names you know (or of the door numbers) and ask for peace for each household.
- For the places. The school, the bakery, the park, the bus stop, the pharmacy, the community center: pray for those who work there and those who go there.
- For the needs. Isolated elderly people, families in difficulty, young people hanging around, those who are grieving.
- For yourself. That you would get to know your neighbors, to see what you don't see.
One possible prayer: “Lord, thank you for placing me here. I entrust my neighbors to you. I don't know them well, but you do. Show me someone to greet, to help, to listen to this week.”
If you are short on time, one minute at the window is enough. If you are shy, this is a good start: you act without exposure. If you live in an apartment, you can simply pray for the names on the mailboxes.
What the Bible says
Jesus gives his disciples an instruction for entering a house:
“And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house. And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again.”
“Peace be to this house”: even before speaking, we wish peace. You can do it in thought, in front of the doors of your neighborhood. Paul, in Athens, reminds us that God himself placed each person where they are:
“And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:”
“The bounds of their habitation”: your neighbors are there by God's design, so that they would seek him. And the book of Proverbs says that “By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted” (Proverbs 11:11): a neighborhood is transformed by those who bless it.
Pitfalls to avoid
Praying from afar, never drawing near. If you pray for your neighbors but never greet them, something is missing. Let prayer push you toward an encounter: a hello, an invitation.
Judging the neighborhood. “This neighborhood is depressing.” Ask God to open your eyes to what is beautiful and to what people need.
Putting yourself above. You are not there to “save” the neighborhood: you are part of it. Pray as an equal with those who live there.
Praying only for the outside. Think also of your own street, your landing, your own door. The first neighbors are those in your building.
Getting discouraged by the difficulties. Some neighborhoods suffer from deep problems. Your prayer doesn't have to solve them: it entrusts them to God, who can do what you cannot.
Today, look at your neighborhood from the window. Say one sentence of blessing for each household you see.