We live in an unkind world where people are often belittled, made to feel unworthy, less than, beneath consideration, and even deserving of scorn.
Your KINDNESS to others gives people their dignity back. It’s a special gift a lot of people don’t see often, yet it communicates very powerfully to others, “You matter.”
The Kindness of Boaz
Boaz was a man who did more than show kindness to others through his acts of service. He WAS a kind person!
The first mention of Boaz in the Bible, and more specifically, the very first words the Bible records him saying, gives us a glimpse of the kind of person he was through the way he greeted others.
† Just then Boaz came from Bethlehem. He said to the reapers, “The Lord be with you.” They answered, “The Lord bless you.”
Ruth 2:4 NRSV
How many people do you know greet others with this kind of blessing? His kind greeting wasn’t an act. It wasn’t fake. It was genuine!
It’s not the kind of exchange one would normally expect to see between an employer and his workers. Rather, this was a grace-filled, blessed greeting. And it created an extraordinary atmosphere filled with life-impacting potential and possibilities!
Could you imagine working for a company with this kind of workplace culture?
Shifting Our Mindset
The kindness we show others plays a huge role in shifting our often self-centered mindset, to a more other-centered mindset.
Kindness in action is like being ready to open a door for someone. It enables us to see the people around us and ask ourselves, “What can I do to help them?” It identifies a need someone may have, who also may not be expecting anyone to meet.
Our kindness is often a pleasant surprise to others because kindness is not the normal thing people display in a self-serving world. Rather, kindness swims against the current of “survival of the fittest,” and often sacrifices one’s personal interests in order to include others in their journey. It’s one of the things Jesus modeled in His life for us to follow, in order to live a life greater than ourselves!
Like a Cup of Life-Giving Water!
For some people, especially those divine appointments God has ordained for our lives, your kindness will be like a cup of life-giving water for their thirsty soul.
In describing the spiritual thirst of his soul, the psalmist said it best:
† As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
Psalms 42:1-2a NKJV
Whether it be from God Himself, or through someone He chooses to use, your kindness has the potential to turn someone’s life around for the better.
Your Kindness Can Lead People Back to God!
Kindness is so unusual, it’s what God often uses to capture a person’s attention in order to get them back on the road that leads to Him; back into the loving and forgiving arms of our Heavenly Father, who desires to give all of us, an eternal embrace through Christ our Lord!
His kindness is a core character trait of God that the world so desperately needs to see and experience. In His kindness, God revealed Himself not only to us, but to all who have put their faith and trust in Christ throughout history.
† Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that His kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?
Romans 2:4 NLT
Let me encourage you today!
Don’t minimize the impact your KINDNESS can have on another human being!
When you show KINDNESS to someone, you may giving them something special they haven’t received in a very long time; a precious and rare gift that expresses to them, “Your life matters.” It can be just the thing someone needs to get back on the road that leads back to God, and something He can use for His glory!
My PRAYER for you:
May the Lord’s grace and mercy, love and peace flow in and through your life and service to others. May His blessing and favor rest on you and flow through you. And may the kindness He has shown us, be shown to those whose lives we may touch this day, and always. Lord, may it all bring You glory. In the name of Christ, we pray. Amen!
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