Kindness…It’s Our Choice…

A servant of the Lord must not quarrel but must be kind to everyone, be able to teach, and be patient with difficult people. 2Tim 2:24

Its hard to find kindness in the world today. People can be ruthless, rude, uncaring and very unkind.

Kindness is defined as, “the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate…having a gentle and forbearing nature.”

How many truly kind people do you know? Isn’t it refreshing being in their presence? Like getting a cup of cool water on a very hot day, kind people make you glad to be alive; they help you see beyond your circumstances or problems. Proverbs 12:25 says “Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up”

What does living a life of kindness mean? It is more than just deeds. It’s an attitude, an expression, a look or a touch. It’s anything that lifts another person up. It can be a phone call to a hurting friend or looking in on someone who is homebound or sick. It means curbing our impulse to speak sharply. If an unkind word does escapes our lips in a moment of stress, kindness motivates us to make a sincere apology. As Christians, it means living out what who we profess to be every day…followers of Jesus.

It means being patient with those who are pushing those “patience” buttons. And it means forgiving, with no strings attached. Just as scripture says in Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you”.

True kindness means catching ourselves from forming critical, negative judgments against people. There is an old adage thats says, “If you can’t say anything kind, then don’t say anything at all.” Sometimes that can be hard to do. One way to do that is to turn a negative thought into a prayer for that person. The Apostle James encourages us, as Christian brothers and sisters, to “pray for one another” (James 5:16)

Imagine how different this world would be if we all practiced “acts of kindness through out the day..every day. Let’s make a conscious effort to be kind to everyone you meet today. Pray and ask the Lord to help you when those less than kind cross your path. Showing someone kindness comes with a double blessing. The person who offers a kindness gets as much or more out of the deed as the recipient. Proverbs tells us, “Those who are kind benefit themselves” (11:17).