“When Adam sinned, sin entered the entire human race. His sin spread death throughout all the world, so everything began to grow old and die, for all sinned.” (Romans 5:12 Living Bible)
Two men had been neighbors for several years and the relationship between the two fellows was cordial and they were considerate of each other. When one went on vacation, the other would bring in his neighbor’s mail. If one was working on a ladder, unassisted, to clean the gutters, the other would voluntarily go over and hold the ladder steady. There are more examples of how the two men were considerate and how there was an absence of the contention that often arises with neighbors. However, on a sultry, sweltering, summer day, one neighbor decided to dig a deep hole for the purpose of creating a man-made pond in his backyard and stocking it with fish. There was no consultation with the other neighbor. There was no checking to see if a permit would be deemed required by civil authorities in charge of approving such work. The compliance control, once done by a cocky, ruling, neighborhood, governing body had long expired and its monitoring authority exhausted. Consequently, contention finally surfaces, and consideration is thrown out the window. Peace between the two men follows, jumping out the same window.
This is how the story unfolded. After a weekend business trip, the neighbor not building a pond returns home and sees a three-foot, deep hole, fairly wide in diameter, perhaps wide enough to move from the pond classification to the pool category. Without even unpacking his luggage, he goes next door, feet just a stomping. He knocks hard on the other man’s front door, so loud that the neighbor on the other side came to his door. On prior occasions, the neighbor returning from vacation had gently rang the doorbell once and could be seen smiling through the peep hole, patiently waiting for the door to be answered. That was not the case on that occasion. His look translated into rage, and he probably was on the verge of releasing a never seen before wrath. No sooner than his neighbor opened the door, he started presenting his opening argument. No rehearsal or prep similar to what a prosecutor goes through to be ready for court was necessary. And if he would have been pre-warned and advised to show patience, that would not have done any good, no good at all. Listen to excerpts from the one-sided “conversation,” minus the innumerous expletives that I do not approve of at all. “Why didn’t you ask me before you started digging your hole?” “Don’t you know that this will impact how water will accumulate on my side of the fence when we have a hard rain?” “You are creating a problem just like the ones that came when they built all the apartment complexes and new housing additions and the lake behind our houses!” “Where did you place the overflow line?” Did you check the city codes?” “You did not even build any type of retention walls!” “Oh I can only imagine the trouble I will experience – because of YOU!”
There are two quick lessons for you to ponder on today. First, before you dig a hole, figuratively or literally, economically, emotionally, or even spiritually, think of how what you are about to do will affect others and even impact yourself. Second lesson, placing an emphasis on a specific type of hole, when you are about to choose to commit sin, either sin by commission or sin by omission, give some advanced thought to whether you are about to dig a hole that will, of course, negatively affect you, but it will also have a negative effect on many others. Love your neighbor. Be blessed!
“and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. ’The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:30-31 NASB)
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King