I choose to do the right things in my relationships with others.
“Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and everyone else.”
1 Thessalonians 5:15
On Christmas Eve after circling a Target parking lot for what felt like hours, I happened upon the perfect parking spot right up front. I waited patiently with my blinker on while the car backed out of the space, but before I could pull in, another car snuck in and stole the spot. Are you kidding me? What was that?! The terrible injustice of it all left me slack-jawed and astounded at the world. Who in the world is mean enough to steal a parking spot on Christmas Eve? I wanted to hunt that shopper down and give him a piece of my mind, but thankfully I had 15 minutes of circling the parking lot to cool down.
Kindness and goodness should be an elementary stepping-stone in the hierarchy of decent behavior. In fact, I’m pretty sure every elementary school has at least one special project to promote kindness: a board in the hallway with an endless supply of sticky notes to acknowledge others who have shown kindness, weekly random acts of kindness challenges, monthly awards for that one kid that nails it, and crafts and calendars that promote being bucket fillers, not bucket spillers. You’ll find slogans on T-shirts, yard signs, animal shelters, and even decals for your favorite cup, saying, “Spread kindness like glitter!” or “Be a good human!”
We all want to live in a world filled with kind people where goodness overflows in abundance, but that seems to be the stuff of Hollywood. What’s more, although it shouldn’t be, kindness can be confusing. Cultural kindness is dramatically different from biblical kindness. Cultural kindness promotes tolerance but with an absence of love, kind of a “grit your teeth and bear it” outlook. A follower of Christ should show kindness not out of obligation or in the spirit of tolerance, but out of the overflow of love that Christ has shown us.
Ephesians 4:32 encourages us to “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Cultural kindness promotes goodness up to a certain point and then calls you foolish for allowing the boundary to be crossed, where biblical goodness endures for the long haul. Galatians 6:9 tells followers of Christ, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Kindness/Goodness is choosing to always do the right thing in our relationships with others, especially when we’ve been wronged. It’s keeping short accounts and acting with an urgency to make things right during times of strife or hardship. Imagine being the first to recognize and admit your own mistakes and ask for forgiveness, the first to extend a helping hand, and the first to throw out a lifeline of human decency to your family, neighbors, and especially those on the margins. Kindness is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) that grows and spreads the closer our walk is to the Lord. If you’re struggling in this area, ask God to soften your heart and remind you of the kindness he’s shown to you. Prayerfully ask God to take those things that are roadblocks (anger, bitterness, indifference, or fear) and replace them with compassion and love for the people He created and loves.
PRAYER
Father, I confess I’m not as kind as I want to be. Remind me of the ways you’ve been faithful in my life and shown kindness to me. Cause me to recognize the goodness you’ve shown me and allow this to overflow in my heart, spilling over to others and pointing them to you. Amen.