When asked by a teacher of the Law in Luke 10:29 to define who his neighbour was, Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan. A story about injustice, abandonment, neglect, generosity, and compassion. It’s also a story about seeing, recognizing, and serving your neighbour. But who is your neighbour?
Here is how you can build a community profile to really understand who your neighbour is and how you can reach them.
1. Use Realty Websites
Realtor Canada www.realtor.ca/en can provide details about any neighbourhood in Canada. Enter your church address or your residential address and click on a residence for sale nearby, then click on “Statistics”. You will receive a lot of detailed demographic information about that neighbourhood that will better equip you for reaching your neighbours.
2. Discover Neighbourhood Profiles
Various organizations and groups often create and post profiles of neighbourhoods. Profile information gives you a snapshot of your neighbourhood; their interests, habits, preferences, and values. If your neighbourhood is mainly comprised of singles who love going to the movies, perhaps a big screen movie night would be a great outreach opportunity. If the neighbourhood is mainly made up of families with preschoolers, interactive family events geared at that age would be a good connect.
3. Access Community Leagues
Many neighbourhoods have community leagues that seek to unite residents in shared activities or social gatherings such as a BBQ, communal projects like a community garden and meeting the felt needs of people, like food bank services, or after school childcare. Community leagues can often have a lot of influence in a neighbourhood and are conduits of information. Some community leagues are well organized and offer members a variety of perks. Others are less formal and may have less committed involvement from residents. Either way, community leagues are a gateway to relationship with your neighbours.
Get to know your neighbour so that you can love them well.
Hailey is the President of the Sub Arctic Leadership Training College and the Director of Northern Initiatives and Church Partnerships for the ABNWT District Resource Center