Kindness Or Being A Kinder And Gentler Christian

Fruit of the Spirit is Kindness or being a Kinder and Gentler Christian

Col. 3:12 Since God chose you to be the holy people whom he loves; you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. As a child of God this verse says one must clothe yourself which to me means you must put it on as you would your clothes in the morning. When you wake up in the morning you choose what your life is gong to be like. This verse tells us that we need to put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. We choose what our attitude is going to be for that day. That is why when I get up my first doing is to read God’s word, pray and do some exercise. These things get my mind and body ready for the day. If I start by looking at the TV, reading the newspaper or listening to the radio I let that be the guide to my attitude. I also like to eat slowly and relax before I go out for my day to get the sense that God is in control. As we get out minds set on the right things and expect to have a good day it helps us to treat others right and enjoy life. Kindness is love in action. There was a blind girl who hated herself because she was blind. She hated everyone, except her loving boyfriend. He was always there for her. She told her boyfriend, ’If I could only see the world, I will marry you.’ One day, someone donated a pair of eyes to her. When the bandages came off, she was able to see everything, including her boyfriend. He asked her, ’Now that you can see the world, will you marry me?’ The girl looked at her boyfriend and saw that he was blind. The sight of his closed eyelids shocked her. She hadn’t expected that. The thought of looking at them the rest of her life led her to refuse to marry him. Her boyfriend left in tears and days later wrote a note to her saying: ’Take good care of your eyes, my dear; for before they were yours, they were mine.’ This is how the human brain often works when our status changes. Only a very few remember what life was like before, and who was always by their side in the most painful situations. Life Is a Gift. Today before you say an unkind word - Think of someone who can’t speak. Before you complain about the taste of your food - Think of someone who has nothing to eat. Before you complain about your husband or wife, think of someone who’s crying out to GOD for a companion. Today before you complain about life - Think of someone who went too early to heaven. Before whining about the distance, you drive Think of someone who walks the same distance with their feet. And when you are tired and complain about your job, think of the unemployed, the disabled, and those who wish they had your job. And when depressing thoughts seem to get you down, put a smile on your face and think: you’re alive and still around.

As we view our day I would like us to think of how we can show kindness. What can I do deliberately to show that I am a kind person? We know that God is kind to us so we are just following in His way. Grace is linked to kindness. A kind heart most resembles Godliness. If we are kind then we set an example for others to be kind to us. MT 7:12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you. PR 11:17 A kind man benefits himself.”

Let us look at ways we can put on kindness.

1. I would like to say the first thing we need to do is to become tender hearted or Responsive to the needs of those we come in contact with. Phil 2:4 “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” The word that sticks out here is LOOK. Many of the problems we find that come to us in family life is because we want our way and do not see the need of the other. Like someone who comes into the house and says “I want to eat now!” They do not ask how they might help prepare the food. Carry the food into the table, set the table, get the drinks that will be needed, offer to help clean up the table, wash and dry the dished or take out the garbage. All they want is to eat now. Kindness is a cause that makes others feel better about themselves. I suggest that you take time to listen and look at the people around you and show kindness. David in the O. T. displayed this for a friend he was close to. His friend had been killed and David had become king. He asked if his friend had any relatives that he might help. He found a son of his friend named Mephiboseth who was a cripple from a fall he had taken when a young boy. He lived in place called Lo Debar which was a town deep in Gileadite territory in Transjordan, far from the family estate and from David’s court. This was a place of no hope. When called to come before the king he said, "What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?" He thought he would be put to death because he was the offspring of the king that David took the place of and so feared for his life. "Don’t be afraid," David said to him, "for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul and you will always eat at my table." David was looking for a way to be kind. He was tender hearted to a man who was without hope. Without Christ people are without hope. Kindness will give them hope.