1 Cor 13

Not long ago Sunday’s Gospel was 1 Cor 13. “Love is patient, love is kind…” You know the one that’s read at every wedding. But it reminded me of the definition of who I must be. “Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength” “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If I can speak in tongues but don’t love I’m only noise. If I’m smart enough to know everything, that wouldn’t matter. All knowledge is useless when Jesus finally comes. No one will need information. It will be useless.
“When perfection comes the imperfect passes away.” If I have faith enough to move mountains I am absolutely nothing if there’s no love with that. Scripture doesn’t say I’m good for a short while. Nor does it say I could be of a little help in one specific case. Paul says I am nothing. All the information in the world and all the faith/spirituality I can dig up from within me is nothing. Nothing I do, say or think is worthwhile if I am not at the same time patient, kind, humble and persevering.
I could be a martyr (“surrender my body to the flames”) or live in complete simplicity and poverty (“give all I possess to the poor”) and that would mean nothing if I wasn’t gentle and peaceful during my life.
It’s all about who I am not what I do or have or think or believe. The big hurdle I’d have to overcome is the 18” distance between my head and my heart.