Key Question: What local interests or events can you use to “throw a party” in your neighborhood?
When searching for a home, you likely did lots of research on the local schools, crime statistics, location, and more. But for many of us, we let one key task slip through the cracks—taking the time to learn about the people who live in the homes next to us.
According to a study by Pew Research, only 26% of U.S. adults say they know all or most of their neighbors, and 12% say they don’t know any at all. However, knowing our neighbors’ names is one of the most important steps we can take to start living out the Gospel and loving our (literal) neighbor.
Our guest for this conversation understands how to follow the way of Jesus in our neighborhoods. Dave Runyon is the Executive Director of CityUnite, an organization that exists to help faith, government, and business leaders unite around common causes in the Denver Metro area. He started a neighboring movement in 2010 and is the co-author of The Art of Neighboring.
In this episode, Dave shares practical steps to become more connected to your neighbors, what it means to be a good neighbor, why genuine relationships involve both giving and receiving service, and much more.
NEIGHBOR-TO-NEIGHBOR IMPLICATIONS:
- When people know their literal neighbors, they are able to lean on one another for support. The value of intentional neighboring in your local area is that the Gospel becomes real and tangible.
- “Most people are not living at a pace where they are available to the people around them.”
- People are not as visible as they used to be. It has become harder to unplug from work and social media. In the past, people would spend more time in their front yards, but now we are often more isolated in our backyards.
- Getting to know your neighbors starts with learning their names and remembering them. Once you’ve done this, you can start giving people a place to gather by throwing parties—and these don’t need to be extravagant to be meaningful.
- Forging connections with your neighbors will involve some mild awkwardness at first—like when you need to ask someone their name even though you’ve already met before. But working through this awkwardness will pay off in spades as you build relationships that go deeper than surface level.
- “In order to be a good neighbor, you have to be available and you have to be visible.”
- Real relationships are a two-way street in which you both give and receive care.
- CityUnite
- [BOOK] The Art of Neighboring
- [BOOK] A Theology as Big as the City
- [BOOK] To Transform a City: Whole Church, Whole Gospel, Whole City
- Who is My Neighbor? Magnet
- [BOOK] Next Wave: Discovering the 21st Century Church
- Connect with Dave on his website
Meet Our Guest
Dave Runyon is the Executive Director of CityUnite, an organization that exists to help faith, government, and business leaders unite around common causes in the Denver Metro area. He started a neighboring movement in 2010 that has now spread to over 3,000 churches around the country. Dave is also the co-author of The Art of Neighboring and speaks regularly to encourage leaders to collaborate for the good of their city. Dave and his wife, Lauren, have four children and reside in the Denver Metro area in Colorado.
Get encouragement and updates in your inbox.
Be the first to know about new episodes, posts, resources, and stay in the loop about what’s coming up.
Other Episodes You Might Enjoy:
