1 John 3:18 “Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”
Every Christian knows, in theory, how to follow Jesus, but actually putting his teachings into practice – well, that’s a bit more difficult. Saying that we ought to forgive our enemies is one thing; actually forgiving them is harder. Preaching about evangelism is easy; actually sharing your faith with your neighbour is not. The world knows this full well: actions speak louder than words – but as Mark Twain said, not nearly as often.
One overloaded pastor turned away a homeless lady seeking help, telling her he was too busy, but he assured her he would pray for her. She wrote the following poem and gave it to a local Shelter officer:
‘I was hungry, and you formed a humanities group to discuss my hunger.
I was imprisoned, and you crept off quietly to your chapel and prayed for my release.
I was naked, and in your mind you debated the morality of my appearance.
I was sick, and you knelt and thanked God for your health.
I was homeless, and you preached a sermon on the spiritual shelter of the love of God.
I was lonely, and you left me alone to pray for me.
You seem so holy, so close to God
But I am still very hungry, and lonely, and cold.’
I relate to the pastor in that situation, because I’ve been in his shoes many times. But sometimes we get too busy, and sometimes BUSY means ‘Being Under Satan’s Yoke’. Our world grows weary of armchair prophets who only advise, and talk, and do nothing. But a body of people willing to serve, to give themselves, to forgive, to love – that group of people is enough to change the world.
How about you? Are you ready to ‘walk your talk’? Jesus did, and he calls us to join him. What might that look like today?
Lord, I choose to walk the walk and not just talk a good game. Amen!
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