NOVEMBER 12, 1 John 3:18

As Robert and his mother got off the ferris wheel, he pointed to a crowd of people. “Can we go see what’s going on over there?” he asked. Mom nodded, and they walked over and joined the crowd. They saw a man with a white painted face acting out various skits. Robert was fascinated as he watched. He laughed with the crowd as the man pretended to be learning to ride a bike. But Robert wondered why the man didn’t say anything. “Mom, why doesn’t he talk?” asked Robert. “Because he’s a mime,” Mom replied. “They never talk, but you can tell by their actions what they’re doing. Just watch; you’ll see.”

Next, the mime pretended to wash a window. He acted as though he bumped his head on the pretend ladder. Later, he appeared to be eating an ice cream cone and to be dismayed when the ice cream fell off. The crowd laughed and applauded as he acted out one scenario after another. The show ended with the mime making a sad face and waving goodbye to the crowd. Robert turned to his mother. “Wow! He never said a thing, but I could figure out almost everything he was doing.”

“That goes to show you how loudly actions – even facial expressions – speak,” said Mom. “It’s good to remember that they really do speak louder than words.”

“They do? Do my actions ever tell you anything?” asked Robert.

“Sure they do,” said Mom. “For instance, just yesterday I told you to clean your room. When you agreed and then rolled your eyes, I knew what you were saying.”

“Oh, Mom!” protested Robert. “I did clean my room like you said I should.”

“Yes, you did,” agreed Mom. “Your actions showed me two things. First of all, they told me that you didn’t really want to clean your room. They also told me that you’re an obedient son. I knew that because you cleaned it anyway.” She smiled. “What I really want to point out is that we should be especially careful how we behave because our lives need to be a good testimony for God. Like I said before, actions...”

“Speak louder than words,” Robert finished with her.