WHAT DID YOU SAY!?! or
WHAT DIDN'T YOU SAY!?!
Have you ever read a quote and then pull back and think, "there's a hole in that statement!?!" I refer to them as "convoluted quotes."
Consider the following example:
I'm certain the original writer of this statement may have been exposed to, or possibly even experienced a life occurrence evolving around the thought "Talk is Cheap,...Show Me!" This may be due to WORDS having long been one of two things - 1.) Overstated, and 2.) Underestimated
When looking at this quote, have you ever considered how the opposite is also true: "When someone DOESN'T love you, they don't have to say it, you can tell by the way they treat you."
My personal observation with this circulated quote is, many people don't know the true meaning of love. This could result in their silence (not "saying it") showcasing their lack of love and/or perceived unneeded connection with others.
You see, one could interpret a person's silence as love/like/connection and it not be any of those things at all. Now, consider the opposite - interpreting a person's silence as hatred/dislike/disconnect, yet they could actually possess just the opposite, a love and affinity for others. Sad, yet true!!!
Our greatest example of love is discovered in our fellowship (not just a relationship) with God. This love is developed in, and through many ways. One of the many ways being through WORDS. Just as our relationship with God is enriched through "words," so our relationships with each other benefit from spoken WORDS. Balance is the underlying principle. We all need both WORDS spoken and the working out of those WORDS (actions). Both the WORDS we speak and our actions require focus, intentionality, and selflessness.
I'll close with some scriptural credibility: "How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth." (Psalm 119:103) For God so loved you and I, that He gave and He gives, He spoke, and He continues to speak today.
So, when reading these statements that are often created with great inspirational intent, we may need to widen the lens on the surface and deepen our internal dialogue. In doing this, we will conclude that we have ALL been given the resource of WORDS to be another artistic expression of the heart. In all of your loving others, whatever you "do," refuse to underestimate the power and healing presence of an eye to eye, heart to heart outspoken "I love you!"
SUMMING IT UP: Should you find sharing your love with someone through spoken WORDS a difficult thing to do, allow that struggle to speak of just how significant those WORDS are and will prove to be for both them and yourself.
So, when considering the picture quote above, I conclude the following, "They don't have to, they want to!"
Beloved, let us love one another truly, fully,... wholly, both in WORDS and in deed (works, actions). (Colossians 3:17)
