"It's just as important to be kind as it is to be right."
I remember when, several years ago, a fellow minister posted that message on his church sign. I thought it was an excellent saying, especially considering the source. My friend was definitely someone who took sound doctrine seriously. He was not the sort of Christian who thought truth was merely relative, or who would be likely to compromise a core belief because it was unpopular. Yet here on his sign, he issued a profound plea for kindness.
Still, we may all agree on my friend's statement, but not many of us live that way. We'd much rather be RIGHT (ie, win the argument) than to be kind. To too many of us, kindness just seems...well...wimpy. Yet there it is in Galatians 5:22, one of the Fruits of the Spirit. How do we practice a kindness that isn't random, isn't weenie-fied, but displays the glorious character of our God? That's what we'll discuss this Sunday. Our text will be Acts 16:16-34, the story of a truly radical act of kindness that changed lives.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I've always wondered why Paul didn't start with kindness when he made the list of the Spirit's attributes. To my mind all the others - peace, love, gentleness, etc. - have to first begin with kindness. And the kindness has to be felt within before there can be an outward action. I remember seeing some years ago a documentary of school children in about the first grade being interviewed about what they wanted to be when they grew up. One solemn little boy, when asked the question, looked off in the distance and answered very slowly. "I want to be a teacher," he said, "so I can teach people how to be kind. Being kind is the most important thing to learn." What a wise little boy, I thought. I couldn't help but wonder if he thought that because he'd learned kindness from his parents or if he'd learned it because of their unkindness toward him. Either way he'd learned something at 6 that a lot of adults haven't learned. Being kind is an attribute that costs nothing and can mean the world to the recipient.
Hi Jeff ,
Here's a good video I found on YouTube about religion, you might like to view it and see what you think.
”God in my life”
I think it makes a lot of good common sense don't you?
From
Chris Hill
American youth: Young gifted and passionate about religion. ”Fiery lady”
Post a Comment