By Jerrica KF Ching

Learning that I was going to be reflecting upon “Loving Our Neighbor” for this week’s AAWOL blog brought back memories of hearing the telling of the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) in my Sunday School class.  At a younger age, the message I received through this teaching is that as a Christian, I should always be prepared to help those in need.  Perhaps it was my interpretation that “the one who had mercy on him” (Luke 10:36) equated mercy to help.  I remember a surge of pride when I was able to help another student at school with homework, or when I assisted a different classroom with cleaning. 

But pride is not to be mistaken for demonstrating a capacity of loving our neighbor.  As I got older, and maybe with the assistance of more lived experience and more interactions with others, I realized that another message within the telling of the Good Samaritan is that we do not need to wait for someone to be in need before we help others, nor do we need to wait to show our care and love towards others.

Loving your neighbor is not about our waiting, but rather our willingness to be one who is ready to love others.  The parable of the Good Samaritan also reminds me of a quote from Mark Twain that goes, “The best way to cheer yourself up is to cheer somebody else up.”  For those of us who are in fellowship, we have felt a strong calling to help others, whether it be through ministry, teaching, counseling, and other forms of supporting those around us.  We are energized by what we do as our work uplifts the spirits of others, are we not?  We do not wait for others to prompt us to do this work.  The joy in this is that we develop relationship, camaraderie, and community, all through our willingness to love. 

As a mental health counselor, I do not wait for a client to do something good for me before I support them on their journey.  Those of you who are pastors would not wait for the congregation to show kindness before you begin sharing the word of God.  Those of you who are teachers do not wait for students to do something kind for you before you share your knowledge.

For those of us that continue to do God’s work, we do so with willingness, enthusiasm, and readiness to love all.  May we continue to demonstrate how we love our neighbors through all our avenues of ministry.

Jerrica KF Ching grew up on the island of Oahu, Hawaii and currently lives in the beautiful state of Washington, working as a licensed mental health counselor and Asian/Pacific Islander mental health specialist, working with children, teens, and adults within the AAPI community. She graduated with an MA in Marriage, Couple, and Family Counseling from George Fox University, where she is now an adjunct professor and supervisor. Her research on racial colorblindness has been published in The International Journal of Social Science Studies.