Love Is

1 John 4:7-12

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.  No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

The deli counter of a crowded grocery store is no place to be standing after a long day of travel.  Facing me, was a middle-aged woman with slicked-back hair and jagged teeth.  My thoughts ran wild.  “This is going to take a while.   It shouldn’t, though.  I just want some turkey.  I’ll make it easy for her.”   As she began her greeting, a huge smile took over her face.  She asks me simply “what can I get ya?”  “I need a ½ pound of honey-roasted turkey,” I replied trying to arrange my face to match her exuberant smile.  “Oh man,” she starts, “I have the best honey-maple turkey you’ll ever eat.”  “Do you want to try it?”  “Sure, I’ll take a ½ pound,” I replied hoping to speed her up a bit.  “you don’t want to try it?  I love cutting it.”  That was the turning point for me.  “Really?” I thought in disbelief, wondering how in the world this particular loaf of pressed meat was better than all the others.  “Sure, why not.  I’ll try some.”  She proudly walked to the slicer and pranced back with a two thinly sliced and perfectly stacked pieced of honey-maple turkey.  I pulled them apart handing one to my daughter, quickly consuming my portion.  She was right.  The turkey was amazing.  She was beaming as she put me in my place “I told you, so.”  After completing my order, she says, “next time you come back, I’ll cut you the cracked pepper turkey.  It’s even better.”

The following day, as I loaded my King’s Hawaiian bread with that amazing honey-maple turkey, I wondered if she knew what she did.  In a few short minutes, she was able to reverse my smug, pompous and impatient attitude.  In turn, she filled me with joy, peace, and love.  This was exactly the gift that I needed this Christmas season.

In my reflection, I wondered, how could so much love come from someone so ordinary, in circumstances so mundane?  How could I come away feeling so special?  The answer, of course, is because that’s the way Jesus does it.  Think about it.  He was born to ordinary parents, in a simple little town.  He picked ordinary people to work with and all of them did extraordinary things.  No fanfare, no fancy parades.  Only love.

Merry Christmas!