Mutual Aid

Mutual Aid

Love your neighbor as yourself.

Mark 12:31

Where do you turn when you need help? When there is a natural disaster, do you turn to your insurance company? When you go into the hospital, do you worry about how you’ll handle the bill?

The Amish believe in mutual aid. Their faith is centered on God, and they also depend on the church community. Church members are expected to help one another in times of difficulty or disaster. Within a family, members take care of one another, and they do not depend on Social Security.

Yet when given the command to “love your neighbor as yourself,” the Amish often give beyond their church community, too, as this news story reports:

It took just a few moments one chilly January afternoon for Wes and Tammy Barr’s Valley View home to burn to the ground. It’s taken nearly a year for Wes, a roofing contractor, to rebuild with the help of a couple of friends. But last week, the Barrs got some much-needed help from some friends they didn’t even know they had.

Wes got a phone call from Tim Schrock of Seal Proof Roofing in St. Ignatius with an unexpected offer no one could refuse: a group of carpenters from the Mission Valley’s Amish community wanted to donate their time to get the Barrs’ new roof built. And on Friday morning, 10 men showed up ready to spend a frigid day helping a neighbor.

Neighbors loving neighbors. Isn’t that what the Jesus-life is all about? It is expected when we do good to those we are close to. It’s unexpected when we reach out to others—those who do not have anything to offer in return. The world takes notice when we care for others. People pay attention, and they get a glimpse of the God we believe in. Jesus knew this.

How can you show the love of Jesus to some “unexpecting” person today?

Dear heavenly Father, show me someone I can love with a great, unexpected love. Help my actions point others to You.