James 2:14-17
Dear friends, do you think you'll get anywhere in this if you learn all the right words but never do anything? Does merely talking about faith indicate that a person really has it? For instance, you come upon an old friend dressed in rags and half-starved and say, "Good morning, friend! Be clothed in Christ! Be filled with the Holy Spirit!" and walk off without providing so much as a coat or a cup of soup—where does that get you? Isn't it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
One day last fall, I promised Timothy I would come and get him on Sunday morning at his grandparents’ house. We had a commitment on Saturday night, so he stayed with my sister and her husband. My sister let me know that there was really no need for me to come after Timothy on Sunday. She was working, but she assured me that Timothy’s grandfather could watch him while she was away. However, I had promised to come after him. A few people said, “He won’t remember”… and maybe he wouldn’t. But I made a promise… and I wasn’t about to break it - unless circumstances were beyond my control.
If you know me very well, you know that I am something of a stickler for people keeping their word. If you say you are going to do something, do it. If you promise to call or stop by… you should call or stop by! If you can’t follow through on a promise, don’t make it. And in my opinion, this starts with small children. It really shouldn’t matter whether the person will remember or not… GOD remembers! He has called us to a life of words and deeds… and the two should match!
So think carefully – and prayerfully – about what you say and do. Look for ways to offer words of encouragement… but back them up with action! The old adage “Don’t make promises you can’t keep” applies… even to phone calls, visits, and commitments to show up in life. By the same token, don’t be a person who is “all talk and no action.” A fully committed disciple of Christ is ready to serve with words and deeds! I promise you… the times you get out of your comfort zone and get off your duff to serve will be your best moments as a Christian.
A couple of weekends ago, the husband of one of my dad’s cousins died. His visitation was in Searcy, some thirty miles away. I had a prior commitment on the day of the funeral and knew I could not attend. So I decided to drive over for the visitation. I really didn’t want to spend my Friday evening this way. I had a lot going on already, and this was not in my plans. But I did it, because I felt that it was the right thing to do… to go and support my cousin and his family in the loss of his dad. I have to tell you, I am so glad I went. I visited with a half-dozen or more cousins I have not seen in a while… some for decades. We reconnected and exchanged Facebook info so we could keep up… and we reminisced about fun times spent at our grandmothers’ houses.
Had I blown off the visitation, I could have sent my cousin a condolence note and said, “I’m sorry I couldn’t attend the visitation.” That would have been a true statement, and he would have understood. But I would not have been obedient to God’s command to be a disciple of words and actions! And the look on my cousin’s face when I reached him in the receiving line told me that I had done the right thing.
Before you go adding stars to my crown, be assured that there have been plenty of times that I have failed miserably in this department. I’ve skipped funerals I should have attended, put off phone calls, substituted a note for a visit, and made promises I couldn’t keep. But I am reminded in this scripture that these are not the behaviors of a true Disciple of Christ! This is not how faith-filled Christians behave. Dr. Seuss’s character, Horton the Elephant, says, “I meant what I said and I said what I meant… an elephant’s faithful, one hundred percent!” I want to be a “Horton” kind of Christian… don’t you? Will you join me today and renew your commitment to put your words… and deeds… into action each and every day? Will your God-talk be followed up with God-acts? Shouldn’t it?
©2012 Debbie Robus
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