Read: Micah 6:8 and Proverbs 3:3
Perhaps we could use a little more kindness and humility in our world? Instead of asking that question how about we live it. How about we show a little more kindness and humility in our world. It is requested over and over in the Bible and the prophet Micah says that God has shown us what is required; “To do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)
In a recent Time magazine essay, Kristin van Ogtrop tells a story from her son’s 4th grade classroom. She writes, “My son decided to put a suggestion box in his classroom, though he wasn’t quite sure what the box would yield. The result was not so much suggestions as appeals for kindness… there was a class wide desire for compassion, if no clear sense of how to get it.”
As Kristin pondered on this exercise in her son’s classroom she noted, “The children want to be on the receiving end of kindness but have trouble handing it out. On a daily basis they are tripped up by three obstacles: lack of impulse control; thoughtlessness; and difficulty with forgiveness, or letting things go.”
From my experience, we adults are much like those 4th graders. We desire kindness and compassion much more than we extend it to others. We also struggle with those three obstacles. How many times have we revisited a situation and desired that we would have had more impulse control, thoughtfulness, and grace?
In Proverbs 3:3 Solomon says, “Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.” If those things are around our necks and written on our hearts it will be much harder to stumble over the obstacles that keep tripping us up. Kindness is not a Christian virtue alone, but it is definitely the guideline and example for those who seek the way of God and follow Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
Make it Personal: What ideas do you have for fostering kindness in your life? If we want a world that is more kind, compassionate, and forgiving, then it must start with us. Think about the three obstacles shared this week and work at improving them in your life. We must begin with prayer and ask Jesus to help us do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly.
