Heat Wave
Much of the U.S. is experiencing or bracing for a similar heat wave that is set to last through the Independence Day holiday which marks the 250th anniversary of America’s founding. As cities across the country plan celebrations, the soaring temperatures make it necessary to incorporate emergency response plans.
Analysis and eternal perspective: Look out for, and check in on, your neighbors. Our digital community here at The Equipped is a wonderful blessing but this story is a perfect illustration of the importance of your physical community. There is nothing that can replace neighbors looking out for each other when something like a natural disaster or an intense heat wave strikes. In those moments, communities that have invested in thick relationship will thrive while those without it will suffer.
As we together aim to be the hands and feet of Jesus in our world, take a moment now to prepare in advance a list of those around you who need a physical check-in this week. A short phone call or text will be enough to provide reassurance in most cases but be prepared to provide care and relief should it be needed.
Let us together remember the instruction of Jesus in Luke 10:37 at the end of the parable of the Good Samaritan. Jesus asks the expert in the law to identify the neighbor in the parable, and the expert rightly replies, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus’s reply is the same now as it was then: “Go and do likewise.”