Serving Our Neighbours

Following Jesus isn’t just about what we believe—it’s about how we live. Micah’s ancient call still stands: act justly, love mercy, walk humbly with God. As followers of Jesus, we are called to step into the way of Jesus not just in study, but in action.

Love is more than words. It’s tangible, sacrificial, and intentional. As a church, we’re committing to serving our neighbours—especially the poor and vulnerable—in ways that reflect the heart of Christ. Make space in your week to practice love in action. Ask God how you’re being invited into His work of justice and mercy, and let’s step into it together.

Preparation

• Begin with prayer. Ask God to open your eyes to the needs around you and to shape your heart to reflect His justice and mercy. Sit in silence and listen—who or what comes to mind?

• Start small and stay consistent. Justice isn’t about grand gestures; it’s about everyday faithfulness. Identify one simple, tangible way to serve—whether it’s checking in on a neighbour, supporting a local initiative, or advocating for someone in need.

• Engage with humility. Step into the work of justice and mercy not as a savior, but as a servant. Learn from those on the margins, listen more than you speak, and let love—not guilt or obligation—be your motivation.

Mercy & Justice | Exhale Practice

Begin Practice

The prophet Micah famously wrote a simple description of the life of those who live in covenant with Yahweh: “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)

It is a life of deep relational connection and it is a life of loving action. Our call as followers of Jesus is to take up this prophetic invitation and example of Christ. As we study the ministry of Jesus on Sundays, we must live the ministry of Jesus in our lives. We are called to serve our neighbours in tangible actions of love and not merely lofty ideas or sentiment.

Make a plan for how each week or each day you can serve or show love to your neighbours, especially the poor among us. We have several shared opportunities to do this as a church family, but pray and ask God how you in particular are called to join in.

This description from The Second Mountain by David Brooks is helpful and inspiring:

If you wanted to generalize a bit, you could say there are six layers of desire:

1. Material pleasure. Having nice food, a nice car, a nice house.
2. Ego pleasure. Becoming well-known or rich and successful. Winning victories and recognition.
3. Intellectual pleasure. Learning about things. Understanding the world around us.
4. Generativity. The pleasure we get in giving back to others and serving our communities.
5. Fulfilled love. Receiving and giving love. The rapturous union of souls.
6. Transcendence. The feeling we get when living in accordance with some ideal.

Social science and much of our modern thinking tends to emphasize the first two desires. We often assume that self-interest—defined as material gain and status recognition—are the main desires of life and that service to others is the icing on the cake. And that’s because for centuries most of our social thinking has been shaped by men, who went out and competed in the world while women largely stayed home and did the caring.

These men didn’t even see the activity that undergirded the political and economic systems they spent their lives studying. But when you actually look around the world—parents looking after their kids, neighbors forming associations, colleagues helping one another, people meeting and encountering each other in coffee shops—you see that loving care is not on the fringe of society. It’s the foundation of society.