Loving in secret

I thought long and hard about how I was going to show love today. I knew that I was going to be out most of the day running errands and interacting with different people, so I knew that I would have plenty of opportunities to love, but I just didn't know how... so I woke up and prayed about it; I left the house and prayed about it; I walked down the streets of Hong Kong and prayed about it, but somehow, I still was at a loss for what to do.

So, I went about my day, doing all the "typical" acts of love; acts that were visible and very apparent to others. I gave up my seat to a lady holding her toddler on the subway, I helped an old man pick up his cane that he dropped on the ground, I helped out a student trying to raise money for Unicef, I chatted up a client and a sales person to give them some encouragement given the tough jobs that they have... but somehow, all these acts didn't really make me feel like I was really "loving" them at all. I felt like I was just going through the motions...

Until, I noticed two kids on the subway. These 2 middle school boys were on their way home from soccer practice. I could tell that they were really good friends; they joked and they laughed, and their friendship really warmed my heart. So I decided to pray for them. I prayed that God would open their hearts so that they would know Him. I prayed that God will protect and grow their friendship, so that it continues until they both old and well weathered in life. I prayed that they would be the Nathan to David in each others' lives and not only support one another, but point out faults in each others' lives so that they can grow in character and in Truth. I prayed that God would bless their family, and their parents.

Of course they didn't know that I did this, and if they did, they probably would have thought that I was some weird-o. (Perhaps you are now thinking that too. :P) But praying for them made me really joyful, because we really need more of these true friendships on earth. It also made me feel joyful knowing that I can love without any outward physical actions to show others that I did such and such. (Well ironically, I guess now you know about it, since I'm blogging about it!) But it's love like this - love that is behind the scenes, that I may or may not know the "ending" of, that has a mysteriously warm feeling about it. I pray that we would live in this way - humbly loving others.

Love challenge: Love in a way that warms the heart, but that other people may never find out about!

"[Love] does not boast."