10.28.11

Philemon 1:7 Your love has given me much joy and comfort,  my brother, for your kindness has often refreshed the hearts of God's people.

My Thoughts

I love this!!  Kindness refreshes hearts!!  It so does!!  We have all had a bad day where somebody took a minute to be nice and completely turned our day around.  A moment of kindness can restore a person's faith in mankind.  Kindness has the power to save lives!!  We never know when some-body's days have been so bad that they may be considering taking their own lives... our kind words may be just the thing that gives them hope.

In the same way our unkindness, or even our indifference can still some-body's joy. We never know when our kindness is "the straw that breaks the camels back," of a person suffering an injustice that no one knows about. The stranger, with the grouchy face, that stands in our way at Wal-Mart...the one we don't want to even make eye contact with, that may be the very person that needs a smile the most. That needs a "Hi, how are you?"  The person that needs a bit of hope! We read about, and see so many of the injustices of the world... and that is only the tip of the iceberg. We like to believe they happen to other people... people in other towns. But, those injustices are happening to the people we see when we go about our days. Those people need hope, kindness gives hope... a simple smile from a stranger can give a person the hope to get through yet another day. A smile can give a person that lives all alone a connection to the world.  We need to never, ever underestimate the power of kindness.

Kindness is energizing!!  I know when I have had a bad day... then I am at the grocery store...on the last few isles, feeling exhausted, then somebody takes the time to smile at me... it makes me feel good, gives me the energy to finish what I have started. Kindness refreshes the hearts of people. Kindness stirs hope deep within our souls.

Jesus always met people with kindness. Jesus was love and it showed, always.  We are called to be like Jesus. To reach the world, to reach one person we have to start with kindness.  A smile opens ears and hearts... our kindness can start with a smile, there is no telling where that smile might lead. Your smile, your hello, you offer to let somebody go ahead of you in like... may be the thing that saves a life today. We have the power to make a day better, we just have to make the choice to exercise that power.