Lessons from the Backyard

It's a lazy Sunday afternoon here. We're watching football and resting up for the week to come. A few minutes ago, I was stirred by loud racket from my backyard. It was coming from these two noisemakers:

These are Sandhill Cranes. They are taller than me, and when they want to "talk", they make a lot of noise. As I watched and listened, and snapped some photos, I found myself thinking:

They are a lot like people. We squawk and make what we think is meaningful noise, but much of it is simply useless.

I want my words and the noise of my life to be meaningful for me and for those around me.

And I was reminded of the words our pastor shared at church this morning from scripture:

All of us know something about this subject. But knowledge makes us proud of ourselves, while love makes us helpful to others. 2In fact, people who think they know so much don't know anything at all. 3But God has no doubts about who
loves him. (I Corinthians 8:1 - 3)

And later in that same book, we find this verse:

What if I could speak all languages of humans and of angels? If I did not love others, I would be nothing more than a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. (I Corinthians 13:1)

And as I stare at the birds some more, I whisper a prayer---

I know that my words are just noise until I mix them with love and understanding for those around me. Help me to remember that no one cares how much I know until they know how much I care.

Lord, this week, help me choose LOVE!