Love is what you do

Rev. Jack O'Dell

I am pretty sure that all moms say this in one way or another at some time or another to all their children. I remember how my mother told me. “Your actions are speaking so loudly that I cannot hear your words.”

Now as a teenager those words just strolled through the ears. But as I have grown in years, they linger more readily than I like to admit. There are times in my journey I grow pretty impatient, somewhat unkind, and yes pretty arrogant.

I think the hospital world picked the word, patient, for its clientele on purpose. When one is in the setting of a hospital, you find yourself not very patient. You are most of the time very uncomfortable dressed in a half gown that shows the world more than one wants to be seen. The answers to what has brought you there is usually not a “quick fix”. And on top of all of this, you can not sleep.

But all of life has a part of this in it. The times when we find ourselves out of Christian character—patient, kind, and humble—are times when the rough edges of life are closing in us. Relationships are not what we expected. Or maybe they have become what we expected much to our dismay.

The answer that Jesus gives to us wherever we are is love. Love can transform our rough edges into the character of Christ. When we give ourselves to the Jesus creed, the Holy Spirit creates within us the capability to be patient, to say kind words, and know humility. It is not what we do, but what the presence of Jesus does within us.

Love is what you do.