new neighbor blues

[Monksailor]

Excellent. Yes, I read both of those in the last couple of years actually. In the 2nd, you get right off the bribe there in Isaiah ch 1 isn't a good thing, but one of the reasons God is going to intervene and punish them.

But the proverb verse is a lot more...interesting, yes? Of course, there is often language meant to wake us up, and we need to be reading in the Proverbs, to get a feel for the style of wording, but this is one that wasn't clear easily. Let's look at more than 1 or 2 translations, and perhaps commentary.

New International Version
A bribe is seen as a charm by the one who gives it; they think success will come at every turn.

English Standard Version
A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of the one who gives it; wherever he turns he prospers.

Berean Study Bible
A bribe is a charm to its giver; wherever he turns, he succeeds.

New American Standard Bible
A bribe is a charm in the sight of its owner; Wherever he turns, he prospers.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(8) A gift is as a precious stone . . .--A description of the influence of bribery:--A bribe is as a jewel in the eyes of him that receives it; whithersoever he turns he prospers: all his energies are called out by the prospect of gain, so that he carries out successfully all that he sets his hand to. The constant warnings against this form of corruption, from the time of Moses (Exodus 23:8) to that of the prophets (Amos 5:12; Isaiah 1:23, &c), show the prevalence of the evil in Israel.


Pulpit Commentary
Verse 8. - There is a breath of satire in this verse. A gift is as a precious stone in the eyes of him that hath it. "A precious stone" is literally "a stone of grace" (Proverbs 1:9). The gnome expresses the idea that a bribe is like a bright jewel that dazzles the sight and affects the mind of him who receives it (see on Proverbs 15:27; comp. Deuteronomy 16:19; 1 Samuel 12:3). Ovid, 'Art. Amat.,' 3:653 -

All from Biblehub here: Proverbs 17:8 A bribe is a charm to its giver; wherever he turns, he succeeds.

Here we can notice how the NIV brings out the meaning better. Interestingly the NIV included Jewish scholars in the translation team. This was an advantage here I think over other translation teams.

I think I'm sidetracking us a little.

The more important passage here is the Romans 12 NIV passage above in post 45.

So, the giving of "gifts" such as cookies or picking up their tree tops IS a good thing which usually receives a response of goodwill. or favor. or biased consideration. biu it is not a bribe.

It WOULD become a bribe if the good-deed doer later is imposed upon by the neighbor they gifted and in response to the offense the good-deed doer brings up their past gift/good-deed. They then have attached a price/bribe to what good they did and demanding recompense and it wasn't a matter of Christ's love but self-servitude.

 

[miggles]

Where did the palm fronds come from? Your tree or his tree?

his tree

 

[miggles]

The op did say it was windy.

i said it was windy after he wrote that i think. so he didn't see it.

 

[miggles]

it could be that since my rider lawnmower has a flat i can't mow like i usually do. the neighbor might think i don't care what my yard looks like.

 

[mkdrive2]

i don't know why my friend said it. she said it was her husband's advice. as far as your second question, i just put 2 and 2 together.

If that is true, I think you did the exact right thing to throw the fronds back into their yard and post a sign. And I think you did good not calling the police over something like this. In my opinion that would have been a very bad idea. In the future, I would not post signs anymore, though. They got the message. They know now that you don't want their stuff in your yard. If they continue to dump their palm fronds in your yard, their is really nothing you can do other than to throw them back into their yard. There are some obnoxious people out there, and you can only accept that or live miserably.

 

[miggles]

If that is true, I think you did the exact right thing to throw the fronds back into their yard and post a sign. And I think you did good not calling the police over something like this. In my opinion that would have been a very bad idea. In the future, I would not post signs anymore, though. They got the message. They know now that you don't want their stuff in your yard. If they continue to dump their palm fronds in your yard, their is really nothing you can do other than to throw them back into their yard. There are some obnoxious people out there, and you can only accept that or live miserably.

thanks. i feel that way too.

 

[A_Thinker]

i have new neighbors i haven't met yet but today i noticed palm fronds in my yard after they mowed. i threw them back and put a 'no dumping' sign on fence. a friend said i should've called the police.

did i do right?

That seems a bit extreme ... I would have tried a meet and greet first, I think.

And your friend is just off the chain ...

 

[miggles]

That seems a bit extreme ... I would have tried a meet and greet first, I think.

And your friend is just off the chain ...

i was waiting for them to get settled in before i descended upon them with greetings. but then this happened and blew that idea to smitherines.

 

[A_Thinker]

they were outside when i did it. when i tried to wave them over to talk they acted like they didn't see me and went inside.

That makes things a bit different. Now I think that your action was justified ...

 

[Monksailor]

If that is true, I think you did the exact right thing to throw the fronds back into their yard and post a sign. And I think you did good not calling the police over something like this. In my opinion that would have been a very bad idea. In the future, I would not post signs anymore, though. They got the message. They know now that you don't want their stuff in your yard. If they continue to dump their palm fronds in your yard, their is really nothing you can do other than to throw them back into their yard. There are some obnoxious people out there, and you can only accept that or live miserably.

It is easy to accept the fact that there obnoxious people OUT THERE but we are not talking about someone on the hwy, at work or school, or grocery store or parking lot or mall or doctor's office. We are talking about someone who has legal control of the space touching your personal stuff and space 24/7. They don't go away. Whenever you are trying to have some privacy and relax in your back yard there all kinds of things which they can do to destroy your peace and quiet, for example, and there is so many more ways they can legally harass you.

 

[Monksailor]

i was waiting for them to get settled in before i descended upon them with greetings. but then this happened and blew that idea to smitherines.

You did not blow it to smithereens at all. You have their address. Send them a snail mail and apologize for possibly being a little too sensitive or possibly having a misunderstanding and communicate your desire to have a good relationship or at least a peaceful co-existence. Send a "gift" card for a local grocery store and ask that they get something they like as you haven't a clue, yet. See what comes from that. Be graceful and give them the opportunity to agree with you that it must have been an unintentional accident or oversight. But don't procrastinate doing this. There is a reason God tells us not to let the sun set on our anger. The healthiest and richest relationships are those which address problems the moment that they arise or "before the sun sets."

 

[mkdrive2]

It is easy to accept the fact that there obnoxious people OUT THERE but we are not talking about someone on the hwy, at work or school, or grocery store or parking lot or mall or doctor's office. We are talking about someone who has legal control of the space touching your personal stuff and space 24/7. They don't go away. Whenever you are trying to have some privacy and relax in your back yard there all kinds of things which they can do to destroy your peace and quiet, for example, and there is so many more ways they can legally harass you.

I did not say that the OP should make enemies with his neighbors. But I don't think there is anything wrong with notifying them that the OP dislikes their behavior. Now, if the OP continued posting signs on his neighbors fence every single time something like this happened, I would think of that as a provocation, but doing it once is OK in my opinion.

To be honest, I do not find it a good idea to send them a gift card while apologizing. I think you are wrong to assume that the OP's neighbors are monsters who need to be appeased. Other than the mistake of littering the OP's yard with palm fronds, they did not seem to be that bad to me. But the OP and his neighbors did have a bad start, and I think it is time to stay quiet for a while until they have forgotten about this incident.

 

[Tropical Wilds]

i have new neighbors i haven't met yet but today i noticed palm fronds in my yard after they mowed. i threw them back and put a 'no dumping' sign on fence. a friend said i should've called the police.

did i do right?

I guess I’m missing something... My neighbor trims their ivy along our shared fence, by default dropping some in our yard. I pick it up and throw it in the compost.

I’m not sure why you wouldn’t do the same, or why one would call the police...? Was there a body under the fronds or something?

 

[miggles]

I guess I’m missing something... My neighbor trims their ivy along our shared fence, by default dropping some in our yard. I pick it up and throw it in the compost.

I’m not sure why you wouldn’t do the same, or why one would call the police...? Was there a body under the fronds or something?

lol. if your neighbor scooped up the trimmings and dumped them in your yard, would you still just throw it in the compost?

 

[Kenny'sID]

A tough one, and calling the police would have been a very bad idea.

All in all, maybe you didn't handle it so badly. You made your point, and you did after all try to talk to them, and mainly, they know you tried to talk to them, and most likely know exactly what you wanted to say.

Might be a case where we just let it be, hold no grudge, be friendly and see how it goes. At the very least, there is a good chance they won't be doing that again, and it was something they really did need to learn, especially if they did indeed scoop them up and dump them in your yard.

 

[Rescued One]

thank you for the scriptures. i used to do that with some other neighbors who did same thing. and it got worse and worse. even when i asked them to stop.

I had a very unfriendly neighbor for several years. I almost got revenge, but the Holy Spirit stopped me. I'm sure it would have made things worse.

Ephesians 4:32
32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

Colossians 3
12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; 13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. 14 And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. 15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.


BTW, I didn't plant maple trees in my yard so that I wouldn't have leaves to rake. My very nice neighbors have a maple tree that keeps growing. They never rake. The leaves blow into my yard instead of staying in theirs.

 

[Rescued One]

A friend is saying you should take them a dozen cookies and say hello, and welcome them to the neighborhood, with love. (do it when you can do it with real forgiveness and love) Perhaps you can ring the bell, and if there is a speaker, you can say "delivery for you!"

That's what I tried! I baked cookies and took them over! I don't think she even said, "Thank you." Neither of us had a fence, but I wish we did. She's living in an expensive neighborhood now.

 

[miggles]

and so the saga continues . . . my mailbox door was open today. you can't tell me the wind did that. lol.

 

[brinny]

and so the saga continues . . . my mailbox door was open today. you can't tell me the wind did that. lol.

Praying (((hug)))

 

[RaymondG]

and so the saga continues . . . my mailbox door was open today. you can't tell me the wind did that. lol.

No, the mailman did it. Maybe you can invest in a camera system to remove the doubts.