But Do They BELIEVE You Love Them?

I find emotions a fascinating part of being human.

• The love of an infant for her mother.
• The delight of a toddler with his grandfather.
• The infatuation of a teenager for her classmate.
• The young love of newlyweds.
• The sense of uncertainty when marriage struggles.
• The deeper-than-friendship devotion of those married half a century.

Some of those feelings, I'm sure you can remember; the others you can imagine. But very few of them can you see.

And that's just one of the things that interests me about emotion. It can be forest-fire-hot on the inside, and frosty-ice-cold on the outside. At the same time.

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I love the folks in my ministry. I really do. I hurt when they hurt. I dance on the inside when they get good news. Joy resonates in my heart when a major life event goes well--salvation, marriage, first child, and more.

But I've learned something powerful. What I feel does nothing for them. What they see, what they receive, does everything for them.

So if I'm feeling frustration but communicate pleasure, I have essentially lied to them and damaged our relationship. If I'm feeling agape love but don't do anything, I have cheated us of the spiritual intimacy God intends for His people.

I think of David Johnson. David was a dear friend in ministry. We had a deepening friendship that lasted about 15 years. He had been to my church and I'd been to his. We shared lunches. More than that, we shared life.

David got sick a while back. Suddenly sick. And then he got better. And then he got really, really sick. And word came that he might not live. He was barely 60. Too young.

I walked into the hospital room in Nashville, after the 75 minute car ride. I had a really good visit with David and his wife, Pam. I prayed with them, I looked David in the eye and said--tears stinging my eyes--"I love you, my brother."

I'll never forget his response. I'd never experienced this before, but it was the catalyst for this blog post. With his characteristically soft smile and a weak voice he said, "I believe it."

I believe it.

How did my friend--and brother--know I loved him?

Because I showed him. I demonstrated my love.

Brothers and Sisters, so does Jesus. And so must we all.

"... God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

Let's be more like Jesus.