Being Kind

The other night we turned the television on to watch something in particular, but while waiting the few moments for the program to start, the many commercials that they have between the shows were on. I was shocked at what I heard and saw. One was for some people pushing a rock over a cliff onto their car because they wanted a new one, I suppose we were to surmise from that that insurance would pay for the damages, allowing them to get a new one. That is just simply morally wrong. From watching such things, we become numb and forget what scruples are. The next ad was for someone hiring a hit man to do away with a wife. The next ad for a show were blood and guts were shown, and finally one for a new game called "Assassin". What are we subjecting ourselves and our children too ? There is nothing good about being an assassin, in murder there is pain not entertainment. All this got me to thinking about kindness and being kind. The very concept of Kindness only sells on the media at Christmas and lately the new Christmas movies look dysfunctional. Are we as a people loosing respect and admiration for deeds of kindness ? We don't seem to want to entertain ourselves with stories of kindness. Books are often about violence and things we don't really want in our lives. We bombard ourselves with news of conflict and strife.

But we are as people called to be kind, to pursue acts of kindness. Each and every major religion has the same calling. So why are we avoiding in our hours of entertainment ? We tend to become like that which we love, right ?

I looked up the words KINDNESS and KIND here is what I found on line...

Kindness :
the quality of being warmhearted and considerate and humane and sympathetic
forgivingness: tendency to be kind and forgiving
a kind act

Kind:
having or showing a tender and considerate and helpful nature; used especially of persons and their behavior; "kind to sick patients"; "a kind ...
agreeable, conducive to comfort; "a dry climate kind to asthmatics"; "the genial sunshine";"hot summer pavements are anything but kind to the feet"

As a Christian I am able to find several wonderful verses about kindness

Galatians 5:But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
Colossians 3:12Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

1 Corinthians 13:4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

Ephesians 4:32Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

1 Thessalonians 5:15 Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.

2 Timothy 2:24 And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.

Titus 2:5t o be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.

So here is the thing, being kind should be our goal. It should be what we read about, what we fill our minds with so we can become strong in motivation.

Imagine, we are told that we are not to pay back wrong for wrong but to be kind. That would take care of road rage, revenge, nastiness to one another, pettiness, and more.

We are told to not be resentful, but to be kind. That means not to resent even the person we don't agree with. There is no room for a grudge there. It means sharing what we have been blessed with, and never being envious, for envy has no element of kindness to it.

It also means that we don't snap at our husbands or wives, or think harsh thoughts to ourselves about them. We are kind to our children, even when they are trying our patience. It means not getting impatient with the cashier at the store, but showing kindness for we never really know what a person is going through. She/he may be slow due to some hardship in their personal life that we could hardly imagine. Kindness gives a person the benefit of doubt. I find myself murmuring inwardly at times when things don't go my way. There is no kindness to that sort of thing. Sure no one hears it, and perhaps I am kind on the outside still, but it is a heart thing that needs work.

Think about kindness today. Remember that children learn from what they see and that our acts should match our talk, if we talk about God, we should act like we know Him and follow His wise instructions for us.
Think of this little quote throughout your day, its really about our kindness. I want this as my life motto...

"Live in such a way that those who know you but who don't know God come to know God because they know you."