Walk in Love part 2
You can't walk in love--or live in love--without walking. When the rubber meets the road is when you actually put heel to toe. When you get out there and DO something. Charity is love in action. Not just an idea. Look at James 2:15-16 (NLT), "Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, "Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well"--but then you don't give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?" I would say no good at all. Because it's not just about fancy words. Paul wrote, "If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn't love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal" (1 Corinthians 13:1 NLT). It's not about what you SAY, it's about what you DO. About putting your money where your mouth is, if I can say it that way. And let me say this: If you're waiting for someone else to make things better all the time... don't hold your breath. Be the change that you want to see in the world. If you want things to be better... inject love into the situation. Love is the only thing that CAN change things for the better. In the beginning when God's creation (you, and me, in our personal stories--which is history HIS story) was dark and void and without form... God said, "Let there be light." And there was light. Jesus is the light of the world. WE are the light of the world. God filled that void with the only thing that COULD fill it. Right? Only God can fill a God-shaped void. Only love can fill a love-shaped void. That's what we needed... so that's what He gave us. That's what we needed... and now that's what we have. And now, equally if not more importantly, that's what we KNOW we have. You can't believe what you don't know. Knowing and believing is the Divine Order of things. Faith comes from hearing, and hearing from the Word (which is Jesus, which is love) of God. When you hear that still, small voice deep inside you saying, "I love you, I love you, I love you" with every beat of God's heart in your chest... that's when you can begin to experience that love by giving it away. Because that's what love is--love is giving. It is never about getting. Walking in love is not about walking TOWARDS something, in the sense of "When I get there I'll get it." It's about walking IN something. Because we already have everything we need. Because we already have Jesus. Let me say it like this: Wherever you go... there you are. And whatever you bring with you... is what you have. If you're looking for something external, you're missing out on what is internal. When you know and believe that the love of God is already inside you, that's when you can fill yourself to overflowing with what you've already been filled with. That's when you can let what's already inside come out. By giving it away. By sharing it. If you're stuck in the past, or caught up in the issues of what someone else has (or hasn't) done for (or to) you... then you're never going to be able to move forward. If it's me vs you... we both lose. If you have to lose in order for me to "win" is that really "winning" at all? But the tide raises all boats. Love is that tide. When I love you, I'm not only raising YOU, but also myself. At that point we can hold hands and walk together. We can walk IN LOVE together. And what's that old saying? "If you want to go fast, go alone. But if you want to go far, go together." Things work out better when we work together. Because we're all in this together. And love is what binds us together--in a healthy, positive way. So it's not about lip service. It's not about SAYING the right thing. It's about charity. Love in action. DOING the right thing. Seeing a need and meeting it!