“She opens her mouth in wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.”
[Proverbs 31:26]
Do you feel like you are kind? A kind person? A woman who speaks and teaches kindness?
I asked myself these questions and honestly, I struggled to answer. I don’t know if all of our intentions translate the way we want them to, but I do know Jesus wants us to exercise kindness because love is kind. (1 Corinthian 13:4) Kindness is characterized as “the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate”. This type of kindness the Bible has commanded us to posses is almost like a lost treasure in our society. We are absolutely losing the love Jesus wanted us to display because hate has replaced love.
Today is World Kindness Day and I wanted to use this day and email as a way to appeal to each of you. How can we, like the woman in Proverbs 31, speak wisdom and teach kindness? I believe it begins with looking for an opportunity.
In a world that promotes self-interest, we have to be intentional about looking for ways to be kind to other people. I want to suggest one small way to be kind in love.
- Create a list of 5 women who fit these qualifications: elderly, widow, teen, new mom and newlywed
- Create a list, under the list of women, of different ways to be kind. Think about what you would like another woman to do for you
- Now, pair a woman to one act of kindness
I believe this is a small opportunity for us to start acting in kindness. After all, God’s demonstration of kindness was Jesus who was full of grace, love, truth and kindness. Jesus was considerate to everyone He came in contact with. Even while He was dying, Jesus took time to make provisions for His mother. Kindness was a staple in Jesus’ life so He never missed an opportunity to provide kindness to someone.
Proverbs 3:3 says, “Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart.”
My prayer is that we can challenge ourselves to get out of our comfort zones and out of our own way to b kind to someone. No, never everyone is deserving of us going the extra mile, but sisters we aren’t always worth God’s extra mile provisions and still, He gives them.
Kindness is truly one of the greatest fruits to plant into another person’s life. Why? Because the world beats us up attempting to tear our lives apart. I believe the little push that keeps us going during difficulties are the moments when we receive kindness from someone. We are all in need of a little (or a lot) of kindness. Today, let’s start paying it forward. Open your mouth in wisdom and kindness then open your heart in love.