Tropical Storm Idalia paid the Lowcountry a visit last week, rushing past us after having poured out her wrath upon Florida and Georgia. Fortunately, the winds and rains that found us did relatively little damage, and I’m not aware of any homes that were in need of repair as a result of storm. There were, however, several trees that came down during the storm, with some taking power lines down with them. As a result, most of the island went without power for more than a day, and some had to wait 60 hours to see their electricity restored. Such is the life of those who live on a bridgeless island, at the end of the power distribution infrastructure.
Out of an abundance of caution, I was clearing out the freezer at the church’s ministry building to remove those items that could have possibly defrosted and spoiled during the outage. One of our members saw what I was doing and expressed surprise. As it turns out, that person had never lost power at their home during the storm, and was unaware that so many of their fellow islanders had not been as fortunate. The result was that an action that seemed perfectly reasonable in my mind seemed like an overreaction in their mind.
Ours is not a large community, either by population or geography, but at five miles long, it is easy for a major thunderstorm to hit one end of the island while the other end enjoys the sunshine. Power comes to our island from two different feeding points to two separate locations, so one source can be disrupted while the other continues normally. And we can be unaware that our neighbors are facing a challenging time if we automatically assume that our experience is what everyone else in our community must be experiencing. Yet when things are going well, it seems to be human nature that we assume it is going well for everyone else – even if there were some obvious signs of challenges around us.
When Nehemiah came before King Artaxerxes with a sad look on his face, the king took notice and inquired, then took steps to help remedy the underlying situation. To help with the problem, whether it is simply emotional support or something more tangible, we first need to be aware that the problem exists. Frankly, that usually entails clues that are considerably more subtle than a tropical storm, and in the case of Nehemiah, it was seeing a sad face when there was normally a cheerful disposition. Fortunately for Nehemiah, the king knew him well enough to know when something was out of place, presenting a signal of troubled waters.
Friends, to love your neighbors is to know your neighbors, and part of that knowledge entails being able to see signs or behaviors that are indicative of underlying challenges. We have to be willing to see them, not simply glance past them. It means that we have to avoid the presumption that if all is well in our own lives, then it must be going well for everyone else around us. To paraphrase the adage about humility, it doesn’t mean thinking less of yourself, but it means thinking about yourself less and thinking about others more.
As we work our way through the storm season, be on the lookout for the smaller storms as well that your neighbors may be facing even as you enjoy the calm in your own life. Then, if you see something amiss, do the neighborly thing and reach out to see if you can help.
Peace and blessings – Pastor Aaron