The Neighbor's House

The Neighbor's House

"I pray that out of his glorious riches He may strengthen
you with power through his Spirit in your inner being."
Ephesians 3:16

If ever there was a lesson on the danger of judging by appearances, the story of Adele Gaboury certainly provides it. When reports that Adele had gone into a nursing home first surfaced, her neighbors began to fill in the gaps. When one neighbor noticed her mail piling up, he promptly notified the post office and the deliveries were stopped. And when her lawn became unsightly, another neighbor paid her son to mow Adele's lawn twice a month. The water was shut off after another neighbor noticed water spilling out of the house from frozen pipes but, all in all, the house appeared to everyone to be a well-kept suburban home.

When the police finally investigated the house as a health hazard, they were shocked to discover Adele's body inside. Four years of the neighbors maintaining her home on the outside had hidden the reality of what was on the inside. The Washington Post reported on October 27th, 1993, that it was believed Adele Gaboury had died of natural causes four years earlier.

Like Adele's house, outward appearances can be very deceiving, not always giving a true picture of what is happening on the inside. Think of what Jesus told the church in Sardis in Revelation 3:1 (The Message Bible):

"I know all the things you do, and that you have
a reputation for being alive-but you are dead."

The Lord is concerned with our inner health, not our outward appearance. The challenge is for each of us to guard against becoming satisfied with an approval from others that is based on appearances and reputation, and not on our true spiritual state. The praise of men, as Paul worded it, can be both dangerous and deceptive - keeping us from a true assessment of how we are doing on the inside.

Take a walk through your house, check the level of joy and contentment, see what the temperature on the inside is at, hot, cold, or lukewarm, and make sure there is a hunger or the things of God. And make sure the door is open for the Lord to come in and do any house cleaning He sees fit.

God Bless
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church