“By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:35

This week, I decided it would be a good idea to chop off nine inches of my hair. Though I am loving my new do, it got me thinking about all the different looks I have had over the last decade. I have been brunette, (almost) black, auburn, platinum blonde, highlighted, lowlighted, two-toned and everything in between. I’ve even rocked cuts from pixies and bangs to long layers and bobs. So needless to say, I have quite the assortment of different IDs, passports, and badges to go along with those styles. I sometimes look back on those mementos and think that I would hardly recognize myself had it not been for the one constant: my smile.

As humans and moldings of our Creator, we are each uniquely different. But Jesus prescribed a good way to recognize a Christian. He told His disciples, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” The ways to show love to fellow believers are as endless as there are people with needs: a note of encouragement, a visit, a meal, a gentle reprimand, a prayer, a Bible verse, a listening ear, even just a friendly smile.

The apostle John wrote, “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brethren” (1 John 3:14). Can others recognize, by our care for fellow Christians, that we know and love the Lord? Though you may become faced with many of life’s changes, what is YOUR one constant? I challenge you today to find practical and tangible ways to distinguish yourself as a believer.