“Caleb, what does the dog say?”
My two year old sat in his car seat behind me as we drove to his doctor’s appointment. I quizzed him on his animal sounds to help the time pass more quickly and enjoyably…for both of us.
“Ruff ruff!” came an enthusiastic answer from my toddler. Thrilled with the game, he awaited his next assignment.
“What about the cat?”
“Meow meow!”
And so it went through ducks, geese, cows, horses, pigs, mice and a myriad of other animals my son has grown to love.
I am not sure what made me ask him one final question, but his response nearly floored me. “Caleb, what does Daddy say?”
Almost instantly, the words filtered up to me in a sing-song cadence typical of my son—“Waywub (Caleb), I yuv you!”
Undertone of Love
Is my husband a perfect man? No. He tries to be the best father he can be. He still loses his temper sometimes. As might be expected, he is at a loss as to how to handle the “terrible two’s” occasionally. At times, when over-tired, he is harsher on Caleb than he means to be. However, Caleb apparently hears an unmistakable undertone of love despite whatever mistakes his daddy makes.
Jesus came to this world to communicate the same. He tells us that He is the manifestation of His Father’s love. He is the embodiment of God’s character. Whether healing a lame man, raising the dead, or casting merchants from the temple courts, Jesus’ message stayed the same—“I love you!” That is what I desire. I want not only Caleb, but all those with whom I come in contact, to be able to say that I love them.
Ask Caleb to sum up his daddy’s words and actions—“I love you.”
When others look at and listen to me, what message do they hear? My heart yearns for the resounding answer of “World, I love you! And Jesus loves you too!”
The Bible says, “Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth” (1 John 3:18).
