Don’t Talk About It, BE About It

Love is patient, love is kind...

- 1 Corinthians 13:4

When I was an RA in college, my primary job was building community. One of the most important aspects of doing so is cultivating an atmosphere of mutual trust, care, and accountability.

In order to do so, you have to truly live your values. A fellow RA, Ivan Ibarra, coined the phrase for us: "Don't just talk about it, be about it."

You can't just tell people "no partying" one night if you're going to go out drinking the next night. You can't tell folks to study if they've never seen you open a book. You can't put out the fires of gossip if you yourself partake in the same practice.

Don't just talk about it, be about it.

Or, in the words of my yoga teacher trainer, "Don't be full of s***."

I think about this often in terms of the Christian community. Are we truly living our values? Are being about it as much as we are talking about it?

When I think of the Christian values that I want to be about, I think of 1 Corinthians 13. So I want to do an exercise with you. I'm going to re-write 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a, replacing the word "love" with "God." Watch for how it describes God's character:

"God is patient, God is kind, God is not jealous, God does not brag, God is not arrogant, God is not rude, God does not seek God's own advantage, God is not irritable, God does not keep a record of wrongs, God is not happy with injustice, but is happy with the truth. God puts up with all things, trusts in all things, hopes for all things, endures all things. God never fails."

Doing this gives us insight into who God truly is. And, it gives us insight into who we are called to be people made in the image of God. Read the passage when I replace the word "love" with "I":

I am patient, I am kind, I am not jealous, I do not brag, I am not arrogant, I am not rude, I do not seek my own advantage, I am not irritable, I do not keep a record of wrongs, I am not happy with injustice, but am happy with the truth. I put up with all things, trust in all things, hope for all things, endure all things. I never fail.

When I think about what it means to not just talk about it, but be about it, this is what it means. To lead with this kind of love. Always. May these be the values we strive to embody every day.