My Neighbor, My Self: Beginning Reflections on a Spirituality of Service - Paperback

by Elise Chase (Author)

"Love your neighbor as yourself." Have you ever wondered what these words might mean for you in your own life? Elise Chase has. Lying on a rickety canvas cot night after night while volunteering in a church-sponsored emergency shelter, she had a lot of time to ask herself questions about Jesus's challenging command and to reflect on how new relationships with homeless men and women were changing her from the inside out. Fresh from an unwanted divorce, Elise began to realize that increasing closeness with these new neighbors was helping her both to heal from pain and loneliness and to enter a deeper relationship with Jesus. My Neighbor, My Self invites readers not just into Elise's own story but also into the stories of many other people. It explores surprising ways that our attempts to live into the second great commandment can actually help us live more fully into the first as well--discovering, in the process, a more fulfilling relationship with the Lord.

Author Biography

Elise Chase, former inspirational reading columnist for Library Journal and compiler of Healing Faith: An Annotated Bibliography of Christian Self-Help Books, holds an MA in pastoral ministry. She helped found and served as volunteer for an emergency homeless shelter at College Church, an interdenominational fellowship in Northampton, Massachusetts. She has recently volunteered at the church's breakfast ministry to homeless neighbors and currently serves on the Board of Deacons and Missions Committee.