What do you do … even when?
Throughout this year of chaos from every corner, as horrific as it has been for millions of individuals, countless stories of compassion, selflessness, kindness, and perseverance brightly shine through the dark clouds of pandemic disease, violence, and political divisiveness.
Even when school teachers were forced to teach students virtually through a computer screen, their anxiousness to lay eyes in person on their students motivated them to plan and carry out drive-by parades and drop off handwritten notes of encouragement.
Even when a lady police officer noticed a distressed rioting protester and needed to be about her job, she chose to stop, listen, and offer comforting words, which seemed to be just what the young man needed.
And one story that overwhelmingly warms my heart is that of an Alabama couple kept apart by the window, brick, and mortar of a long-term care facility. For the last 17 years, Dr. John Kline has helped his wife Ann through her ongoing battle with Alzheimer’s. He would spend his days teaching at the local university and then hurry over to the nursing home where the love of his life lives. But even when the statewide ban on visitors was implemented, Dr. Kline did not let this barricade stop him. He would stand at the window on the outside of her room, still at her bedside, and sing “Amazing Grace” along with his wife. He was quoted as saying, “Though a pane—not a pain.”
When I think about Dr. Kline and his daily routine to visit his wife, I love that even when he couldn’t go into the facility, he found a way to see her. He persevered. He kept going. He kept on loving. And that one aspect of love brings to mind a set of scripture in the Bible known as the love chapter found in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, which reads,
“Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not arrogant, is not rude, is not self-seeking, is not irritable, and does not keep a record of wrongs. Love finds no joy in unrighteousness but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” CSB
I wonder if Dr. Kline always felt like going to the nursing home every day, especially when he was tired, and the weather was dreary and rainy. I wonder if the teachers always felt like teaching virtually through a computer screen while their students ate and played with their dog instead of listening and learning. I wonder if the lady cop felt like comforting this rioting protestor, thinking he was not deserving of her time.
If I’m totally transparent, I don’t always feel like being patient. I don’t always feel like being kind, especially if someone hasn’t been kind to me. I don’t always feel like letting go of my pride because humility seems to be a sign of weakness. I don’t always feel like not keeping a record of wrongs, and as a result, I get irritable. I forget that none of us are perfect. I constantly need to be reminded that perfection exists only in God.
How about you?
When you and I don’t feel like doing some of these things the Bible describes as love, we should pay close attention and notice there is an important word missing from this section – the word “feel.” It simply says love is patient, and love is kind – whether we feel like it or not! This love can only be described as unconditional and persists regardless of circumstance. It goes beyond the emotions to the extent of seeking the best for others and putting their interests above your own.
We see this modeled in the life of Jesus. We see this lived out and put in place at the cross. I don’t imagine Jesus felt like being patient or being kind. I don’t imagine it felt good to be hated and despised or that He felt like not keeping a record of the beating and scourging. It obviously didn’t feel good to carry the weight of every person’s sins (past, present, and future). Just think about how often you have sinned and messed up. Think of the weight of the sin you carried and how heavy that weight was. Now multiply that by the sins of the world! That weight didn’t feel good on Jesus’ heart. The weight Jesus willingly carried to forgive us came at a great cost. But love prevailed.
Because love never ends, God will give you the desire and the power to overcome the emotion of your feelings to love even when.
“We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So, we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters.” 1 John 3:16
Kim King
Lean into Jesus Ministries
#kimkingblogs