Words by David Byrd | Image by Jeff Johnsey
What do the letters LA mean when one encounters them together? I would have to say that to most people, the letters denote the largest city in California, Los Angeles. For the people of south Alabama, the letters might refer to their part of the world, Lower Alabama. To me, however, the letters have a totally different connotation.
It all goes back a few years ago to a personal note I received from the publisher and CEO of 78 Magazine and The Walker Leader. Yes, I am referring to the one and only Al Blanton.
After thanking me for some nice deed I had done for him, he ended the note by writing, “Love always, Al.”
My first thought was, no, he didn’t write that.
I looked at it again. It was still there.
If my wife or one of my daughters ends a note like that, I don’t think anything about it. But no dude has ever signed a note that way before.
I immediately called Al and asked him about it, and he said, “No, I didn’t.”
I then took a picture of it and sent it to him.
Needless to say, we have had a lot of laughs about that over the years. If, in the future, you are around the two of us, you might hear me refer to Al as LA.
I have no doubt that Al does, in fact, like me, but there is another man who loves me even more. His name is Jesus Christ. He said in John 15:13, “Greater love has no man than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.”
Jesus left the glories of heaven to come to this world to live among us and then die for us on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus, who owns everything and owes nothing to anyone else, paid my debt that I could not possibly pay for myself.
That is real love, my friend.
And I am just one person among the billions who have walked on this planet. Yet, He loves everyone just the same as He loves me.
He is waiting for you to desire a personal relationship with Him. When you reach out to Him, He will come into your heart and life and begin to lead you every step of the way until, one day, in death, you will enter His very presence.
I promise you this: that relationship will be the greatest love relationship you will ever experience in this life.
And oh, one more thing, I love you, Al. I always will.
DB. WL
