Listen

Love never fails. As for prophecies, they will be brought to an end. As for tongues, they will stop. As for knowledge, it will be brought to an end. We know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, what is partial will be brought to an end. When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, reason like a child, think like a child. But now that I have become a man, I’ve put an end to childish things. Now we see a reflection in a mirror; then we will see face-to-face. Now I know partially, but then I will know completely in the same way that I have been completely known. Now faith, hope, and love remain—these three things—and the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13:8-13

Think

I work out at a gym, and one day the “motivational white board” had this message: “Every professional started as an amateur. Every expert started as a beginner.” I cannot expect to get in shape if I do not commit to the work. Likewise, answering God’s call to speak takes practice. It’s a process. It takes more than just showing up to church and hoping. It is more than reading a devotional and praying. It takes real work and commitment. Truth be told, love is always about commitment.

So start practicing and volunteer at a shelter and help the homeless. Go on a mission trip and build a school or a well. Talk to your pastor and visit with people who cannot leave their homes. Commit to changing the world one person at a time. You are called to speak through your hands and your feet. So go, practice regularly, and let God’s light shine in you and through you.

Ed Stallworth

Pray

Lord, work in me so that others may see you through me. May my devotion to you be more than the words I read, the church I attend, or the songs I sing. Let it be instead the life I live. Amen.

Go

Francis of Assisi once said, “Preach the Gospel at all times; when necessary use words.”

May God walk with you, work in you, and speak through you because of the life you live.