A Dead Turtle…
It has never been a great desire of mine to see a beheaded snapping turtle nailed to a tree by its tail. Not at all, actually.
Love…
"Love must be sincere." Romans 12:9
I have read the verses that follow this one many times, but have just recently been struck by the first sentence. Before Paul gives any instruction on how to love he says, "Love must be sincere." How often have I done the things listed in these verses out of a motivation other than sincere love? More times than I care to admit. I've been thinking about this quite a bit as I consider how I am going to be spending my time on The World Race. Paul's words to the Corinthians echo continuously in my mind.
"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing." 1 Corinthians 13:1-3
Wow. We can go through this life "doing" like crazy, but if we do it without love, we are nothing and we gain nothing. Since I don't want to waste my time (or anyone elses), I have been praying in earnest. I have been asking that I may see every person I encounter through God's eyes, so that whatever I do may be done out of a sincere love for them. I have said this prayer with The World Race in mind, but what better time to love than now?
A Dead Turtle and Love…
I recently had the opportunity to be a part of Jesus Loves Kalamazoo, a gathering of area churches to pour out love on this city. I went around with a group to pray for people and invite them back to a nearby park for a free meal. One man, Ronald, stopped us in front of his house, gladly accepting our prayers, but his friends did not feel the same. I prayed for Ronald while trying to ignore the hard look coming from one man in particular on the porch. I kept thinking, "We'll just finish this prayer and move on." I did try to move on…twice. And twice we ended up starting up another conversation with somebody else on the porch. I was eventually able to work up the nerve to invite Rick, the one who had been staring at us cynically, to come get a free meal at the park. A smirk appeared on his face as he said, "Naw, we've got a turtle to cook up hanging in the back." He stared at me, still smirking, as he waited for my reaction. (Did I mention that turtles are my favorite animals?) What came next was not a normal reaction for me and I didn't even really stop to think before blurting, "No way! Can I see it?" Rick laughed, "If you really want to, but promise me you won't cry."
He led us in the back to not only see the beheaded turtle, but also have a discussion on just how to cut the shell and cook it up. Yum. Here's the weird thing: I was sincerely interested. Not interested in eating turtles, but interested in Rick. In that moment, I saw past the cynicism and the anger. I saw God's son. In that moment, I just wanted to spend time with Rick, even if that meant discussing a dead turtle. It was worth it. After much talking and laughter, Rick stopped, looked at me with softness in his eyes and said, "This is really cool what you're doing here. I mean, I'm not religious or anything, but this is cool what you're doing. Taking time out of your own day to come out here and pray with people and talk with people…yah…that's cool." I told Rick that it is easy to stop and love on people when you know the love of Jesus.
Paul calls it "the most excellent way". It is indeed excellent and I don't want to do it any other way. Whatever it takes and whatever it looks like, may I "do" out of a sincere love that comes straight from the Father's heart.
