My revelation came at a time when I was reading a leadership book about Jesus and a acronym for LOVE popped into my head and it was:
L-LIVING
O-OUT A
V-VERB
E-EVERYDAY
To me, this is love. It has nothing to do with buying things or a love language, which all of those are nice and important. It is finding ways of action to show others that you love them. This concept isn't just good in our marriages and families, it is good for our organizations, programs and leadership strategy. Since having this revelation I have tried to go out of my way to show others that I love them. Whether that is a text message of appreciation, treating baristas/servers good, or going out of my way for a coworkers. My goal is actually living out love.
Jesus is the perfect example of love and leadership. Not only did He lay down his life out of love for all humanity, but he showed how to love in a practical sense. A great example was in John 4:1-25, where Jesus talks to a Samaritan women. You see, Jews and Samaritans did not socialize, be seen with, or talk to each other. And as Jesus comes on the scene, he notices a opportunity of to display love that is cross cultural and dignifying. So as his disciples go into town to get some food, Jesus sits and talks with this women.
As they sit He talks in a metaphor about living water to her. He then tells her to get her husband so he can have this living water as well. Side note, I find it funny that Jesus has a way of asking questions, and knowing the answer even before it is given. So she replied, "I have no husband." Jesus said, "I know, you have had 5 husbands." As they proceed to conversate, Jesus validated the interaction the two of them had, by just simply saying hello. Jesus could have drew his own water and went on to find some food with his disciples, but instead he went out of His way to have this interaction. I am sure this interaction was brief and maybe only lasted a few moments, but those moments echo in eternity for this Samaritan women, because of the love that was on display.
My thoughts are how many times could I have loved someone, but instead I worried about my own agenda first. See that is the whole thing about true love. It is bypassing our personal agenda, and honoring someone else's. Which then is the essence of humility. It is so fascinating that so many other positive traits play off this one called love. My challenge to you, is to figure out a way to love that is out of your comfort zone and watch the reaction you receive and how other traits become more prevalent.