If you’ve been to a wedding lately, you’ve likely heard the words of 1 Corinthians 13. It’s no wonder why – how else are we supposed to provide simplicity to such a complex concept as to what it means to spend a life imperfectly loving someone?

A pastor friend of mine uses a very simple exercise with this passage – replace the word “love” with “showing up.”

Showing up is patient.
Showing up is kind.
Showing up does not insist on its own way.
Showing up keeps no record of wrongs.
Showing up always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

If you’re a more practical person like myself, this lands differently. Love stops being a lofty ideal and becomes a concrete action – a choice to be present, consistent, and available in someone else’s life. Showing up may not feel spectacular, but it is unmistakably Christ-like.

This is the foundation of any meaningful attempt at “ministry.” Before strategies, frameworks, or citywide collaborations, someone simply has to show up. Presence is always the beginning of transformation. The Kingdom advances through presence, through being willing to enter someone else’s story, even when it’s messy or inconvenient.

When we talk about mobilizing volunteers, strengthening neighborhoods, or reaching 2.3 million people across Greater Cincinnati, the scale can feel overwhelming. But nothing changes at the macro level unless something changes at the micro level, through ordinary people showing up in ordinary moments with extraordinary consistency.

If we want to love our city well, it won’t begin with grand gestures. It will begin with faithful presence and showing up in patience, kindness, humility, and perseverance.

Because at the end of the day, showing up is love in motion. And love in motion is what transforms people, communities, and cities.