Louder than Words

“May my life speak
louder than words”, lyrics from a group called The City Harmonic, stay on
my mind often.

I believe that our words have power and they influence people for better or for worse. They can create an environment filled with love,
joy, respect, encouragement and optimism- or the flipside- pessimism, skepticism, hate and
dishonor.   God’s given us the ability to
speak and bring life or death. We can
address injustices to bring change or we can remain silent.  However we choose to use them, our words will indefinitely impact generations to come. 

All of that said, our words can also be relied on too much.  We can
speak passionately about the injustices in
the world, and then we’re quick to say no to helping a friend in need because it inconveniences our schedule.  We
feel uplifted as we share the inspiring stories of people who have gone for it
and made a difference. We get fired up
over people that should have done more but didn’t, all the while in our spare time we’re found sitting on the couch complaining that there’s nothing on tv..  We are quick to update our FB status to let
everyone know whether we stand for or against the current issue at hand…but
then what? 

Most often, nothing.

Are you all words with no action? Or are you going through the motions while your heart remains distant?  Most of us are
in one of the two boats, sometimes jumping back and forth.

What if we all became mute, left unable to justify our actions or lack thereof?   Would you be known for putting others first? Would you be considered
a person of honor and integrity? Would
people know your greatest passions or you would be seen as floating through the day to day just to get by? Would
they say that you value relationships and that you love well? If you couldn’t justify your actions or use
your words to tell what you believe in and stand for, what would the message of
your life be? 

I’ve been thinking about people like Mother Theresa and
Martin Luther King, Jr. lately, and the incredible impact that they’ve had on
the world we’re living in. It’d be easy to say
that they had a clear cut purpose that the Lord placed in their path in which
they simply chose into. But the reality
is, each of us has a that big of a purpose in our lives…it just looks different,
and it should. MLK spoke with passion
and moved into action. Mother Theresa
loved as if it was oozing out of her every pore onto each person she
encountered. They counted the costs and they
became. They became love, compassion, truth,
mercy and justice.   They became Jesus with skin on. 

I know we’re supposed to live a life of balance and that we
are to do everything in moderation. Does
love count in that equation? If we see a
need that we can meet, are we supposed to pass it up because we’ve already
helped someone that day? I’m not sure
love qualifies as something that needs to be in moderation. I want to love fully and with all that I am.  I tend to be good at relying on myself to do
this, which leaves me exhausted, unsatisfied and burnt out.  
I’ve learned it before, and I’m learning it again- the more I push into
intimacy with God, the more His love overflows in me which is eventually bound to
leak out onto those around me. It’s a
beautiful thing, wouldn’t you say?

“So go on sing, sing,
all of heaven and earth,
But don’t just sing – be – and be every word…”