"Young"

I remember they would look at us,

Just smile and shake their head,

Thought the young were crazy,

Least that’s what they said.

They’d reminisce of old times,

And slower, kinder ways,

Back when they were growing up,

What they called good old days.

And now those folks have long since passed,

And we’re no longer young,

In fact we smile and shake our heads,

So far from them we’ve swung.

We think the young are crazy,

Stuck to cell phones and their games,

Tick tock and so many more,

Too numerous to name.

We find fault with the way they dress,

Their piercings, hair and ink,

And worse we cannot understand,

The way they talk and think.

But we would be better off,

If we, the older folk,

Could find some new compassion,

I tell you, it’s no joke.

If we don’t learn to love again,

Though we may disagree,

We will only turn them off,

And no one gets set free.

Cut some slack, give some grace,

When the truth we speak,

They will only know we care,

If love is our technique.

If fact that’s just what Jesus meant,

When He said these words so true,

The world we know that we are His,

When they our love can view.

No matter if you’re young or old,

Or how long you’ve followed Him,

Let me share some somber news,

So serious and grim,

We will lose the young you see,

If we do not wake up,

Thirsty they will come to us,

And find an empty cup.

But, my friend, it’s not too late,

Don’t shake your head and smile,

Nor write them off as crazy,

Let’s go the extra mile.

“By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:35, NIV)

How will they know again? By our love for one another. And that, my friend, is why so many of them don’t know. They just haven’t seen the love God wants them to see. They haven’t seen it lived out and illustrated. What have they seen? They have seen us go to church, read our Bibles, pray and all sorts of other worthy things. But it’s the love that shows that we are authentically His. And the love we share becomes God’s greatest advertisement. Why don’t we love more? Why don’t we love better? It can only be because of our own egos that need to die. Love shown and shared will get the job of evangelism done when nothing else will.

Lord, teach us to love one another, in Jesus’ name.

Art by JaNeil Anderson, used by permission. Thanks, JaNeil, and God bless you.