Finding the Unity in Community

It began like any other monthly meeting of our condo association. Then a local real estate developer who had requested time on the agenda dropped the bombshell: He wanted to buy out all 77 condo owners (at a premium, of course), tear down our aging condos, and redevelop our prime location acreage as a high-density, mixed-use development.

Overnight, word spread among homeowners not at the meeting. Rumors ran rampant, emotions flooded conversations, and general chaos ensued. One owner started packing; another went on record that she would not budge at any price. The other 75 homeowners found their initial footing somewhere between the extremes.

Meanwhile, I sensed that my neighborhood had just become a critical context for the high calling of my daily work. We faced a complex decision that drilled to the heart of differing personal values (such as relationships, lifestyle, and financial gain) and required social trade-offs (such as unbridled development and consumerism at the expense of community and environmental stewardship). We were in turmoil. Self-interest and greed threatened to consume harmony and cooperation—and destroy our community.

I prayed for wisdom about how I might exercise leadership in this challenging situation, and God brought familiar words to mind. The prophet Micah reminds us that God has shown us what is good and required: "To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God" (Mic. 6:8).

Acting justly involves being guided by truth, reason, justice, and fairness. We were facing an experienced real estate developer whose previous successes had come through a divide-and-conquer approach. So I immediately gathered relevant facts and background information for our next homeowners' meeting. We needed a process that would prevent co-owners with superior negotiating skills from winning higher premiums at the expense of others. I voluntarily conducted a homeowner survey so that everyone could know each others' opinions. With good, honest communication, we might find a place of unity from which to negotiate with the developer.

Loving mercy involves acts of kindness and compassion. At the homeowners' meeting, I cited broad examples of the diversity of our neighbors' circumstances and emotions and appealed to others to remain considerate of these during the trying times ahead. Subsequently, I found myself with opportunities to lend a listening ear, to challenge folks to look beyond immediate financial gain to their deeper values, and to share with others how an unexpected windfall could be used to further a dream or higher purpose.

Through it all, I tried to walk humbly, without a clue as to how this will end but holding tight to the promise of Jeremiah 29:11 : " 'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.' " It would not have been my choice to leave my home and neighborhood, and so I can only ask daily, "Where is God in this, and what is He calling me to be and do in this place?"

The end of the story is yet to be written, and finding a win-win solution for all parties will take extraordinary leadership, creativity, and compromise. We live in a win-lose culture that pits neighbor against neighbor for material gain. My prayer for this community is that we will all give a little ground so we can walk in unity for the benefit of the common good.