God knew what he was doing when he led Nate and I to our Michigan cottage. Unbeknownst to us, the couple right next door would rescue us again and again. Bob and Linda have taken it upon themselves to help widows and others who need… well… just about anything.

Linda cooked monster-sized meals for our whole family throughout Nate’s days of illness. Then after he died, she lovingly coaxed me back into the world of people by repeatedly inviting me to her Bible study.

Bob is a jack of all trades and cheerfully tackles any problem with gusto. He often partners with his friend Gunnar, and the two of them make work look much like play. I’ll never forget the day they came to help when our power went out, the only house in the neighborhood to go dark. After trying all the usual tricks with our old fuse box, they discovered the power line from the house to the street had been strangled by tree bark. Thanks to their creative thinking, my power was restored that same hour.

Yesterday afternoon Bob and Gunnar brought my kitchen into the 21^st century by installing a dishwasher. After five weeks of dishes-by-hand virtually around the clock while the 15 of us were together, I determined before the relatives returned, I’d have a dishwasher. It’s also possible the endless sickness we passed back and forth during those weeks would have been wiped out by sterilized dishes. At least that was a good excuse to go appliance shopping.

As they worked, I learned that installing a dishwasher requires creative plumbing and electrical skills, as well as a rib cage strong enough to lean on the sharp edge of an under-sink cabinet for a long, long time.

Occasionally I heard them say, “Oh oh,” or “What about this?” as they worked half-in and half-out of the cabinet. But when I asked if there was a problem, they laughed and said, “It’ll all be fine.” And it was.

The first time Bob and Gunnar fixed something for us years ago, I remember saying, “Thanks for the help. I’m sure you’d rather do other things with your afternoon.”

“This is what we like to do,” Bob said, an interesting answer.

Because they’ve solved problems for me again and again, I know it’s true. These men are retired, but not really. They’ve just shifted their work focus. Both love the Lord wholeheartedly and spend a great deal of time volunteering at the church and on outreach projects near and far.

They’ve been first responders to disaster scenes all over the world during their “retirement”, doing whatever needed doing when they got there. Although they’re happy to help the widow next door, they keep their passports handy, too. 

I see them as the hands and feet of Jesus, putting the interests of their neighbors ahead of their own. And best of all, they view the entire world as their neighborhood.

Lucky for me, today they chose to make it a beautiful day in my neighborhood.

“Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself’.” (Matthew 22:37-38)