The passing of Della Reese who starred as Tess in Touched by an Angel from 1994-2003 brought me to think about the song Testify to Love. I was first exposed to the song on the television program, although it had been part of the Christian rock playlist for some time already. I revisited the song as part of the worship band at my Catholic church. And, since yesterday, I have been reminded of how much I like this song's message.
While there are a lot of lyrics and they have a Christian-oriented focus, I believe that the following lines really capture the song's meaning for me and require no Christian beliefs:
That seems simple enough. But the interpretation of the second line is just as important. If I am going to live it out, I can't just live it out when it is easy. I can't just live it out by talking about love. I must act from a base of love at all times. Even when there are no words or all the words are meaningless (and not enough).
This is a real challenge--to make acting from love primary in my life and to be able to show action from love under even the most challenging circumstances. It means being there for people. It means showing up for people. It means acting from love when it takes all of one's effort to not lash out in response to what feels like an injustice. It means just doing the work of good even when the times are bad.
To have the woman who played the "mentoring angel" on a show in which the characters lived out the message of acting from love even when that could have been furthest from the mind just caused me to reflect on the message a little more than usual.
While there are a lot of lyrics and they have a Christian-oriented focus, I believe that the following lines really capture the song's meaning for me and require no Christian beliefs:
For as long as I shall live, I will testify to loveHow do I interpret these lines? The first question is what does it mean to "testify to love"? Simply put--live it out! Act from love in all that I do. Am I perfect in that? Of course, I am not. But I can strive for this goal.
I'll be a witness in the silences where words are not enough
That seems simple enough. But the interpretation of the second line is just as important. If I am going to live it out, I can't just live it out when it is easy. I can't just live it out by talking about love. I must act from a base of love at all times. Even when there are no words or all the words are meaningless (and not enough).
This is a real challenge--to make acting from love primary in my life and to be able to show action from love under even the most challenging circumstances. It means being there for people. It means showing up for people. It means acting from love when it takes all of one's effort to not lash out in response to what feels like an injustice. It means just doing the work of good even when the times are bad.
To have the woman who played the "mentoring angel" on a show in which the characters lived out the message of acting from love even when that could have been furthest from the mind just caused me to reflect on the message a little more than usual.
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