Unexpected Kindness
“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” ~ Colossians 3:12-13 (NIV)
I mentioned before that I work for a pretty big corporation in the accounting department. Although accounting is pretty much international, there are always nuances – depending on the company’s business. So, every time you change jobs, you have to learn some unique skills. I am very blessed that I have a gal in my department who takes the time to teach me the uniqueness for this particular company. This past week I had sent an email to the manager and the supervisor of our department, stating how thankful I was for my co-worker’s training. My co-worker said: “You didn’t had to do that, I like to help”… No, I didn’t had to do that, but I felt compelled to do it.
You see, we live in a darkened, cut-throat world. There is not much kindness going around — is there? We hurry, rush and don’t think about being kind to each other. We rather speak ill of others to get ahead — we don’t give credit where credit is due. We want the next promotion — never mind the person who helped us along…
But we, as Christians, can make a difference, can’t we? Paul is telling us in Colossians to ‘clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience…’ Although Paul is talking about situations within the Christian community, I think we also have the responsibility to extend this kindness to the ones who do not believe — yet. We never know who is watching our actions. We might be powerful witnesses not with words and Christians tracks, but our actions…
“Lord of Heaven and Earth. Your Holy Spirit lives within us. Help us to be a light of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience in this darkened world. We pray this in the precious name of our Lord and Savior, we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen”
How can you show kindness in the world you live in? Are you as kind to unbelievers as you are to your brothers and sisters in faith? I would love to hear from you today…
Blessings on your day and as always…
I agree, it is absolutely our responsibility to treat the unsaved/lost as we do fellow believers. That is how we let our light shine~that’s how they see Jesus in us. Great post!
I like this, when you do what is not expected, what is agains the “world’s” norm, then people notice. This is how we show God’s love for others. Blessings.
I stop more and more often to smile and thank someone who is working very hard. They do seem to appreciate it and I think since we have no clue to what they are going through in their lives at least letting them know we appreciate what they do for us helps them make it through their day.
It is always a blessing to others and to us when we follow through and doing something kind. Too often my kindness gets caught in the thought phase- “I ought to send her a card..”, “I should get him a Dunkin Donuts gift certificate,” “I should call and see how he’s doing…” Most of the time, the kind acts would hardly take any time or effort at all.
Thank you so much for this Iris. This devotion is meaningful to me in two ways…one within our church as we face a church conflict. I need to daily remind myself of these very words that you have quoted from the Bible. And also as I am in the world doing daily errands, my daily exercise walk I meet people, in the stores, etc. this is very important for me to remember. How often are we set on getting our errands done and getting back home that we often miss opportunities of kindness? I also feel that this is the basis of my revolution that I talk about on my blog~ Dirty Feet for Heaven in 2007. The little acts of kindess DO mean a lot. Thank you for this devotional today. May God bless YOU today. HUGS Habe ein guten tag!(translation for others: Have a good day).
yes I agree, even a simple smile or a thank you does wonders…
I am just as kind to non-believers as I am to believers. I dont’ know what people hold in their hearts or minds, so I just treat everyone with kindess…just as I would like to be treated! Great post, as usual, Iris!
Great post Iris! I’m sure your co-worker will always remember what you did. and you are right, actions do speak louder than words.
We never know who is watching our actions. — Iris, this is soooo true. Kindness speaks louder than words. Wonderful.
BTW, you are one of the kindest people I know. 🙂
Great post and wonderful reminder. One thing I’ve been really working on is making eye contact with people. I’m shy and it’s hard for me but I really want to connect with others and let them know that they have my attention.
I think it is absolutely essential to treat everyone with love and compassion. That is how Jesus lived, and that is what will help the lost find hope. I found God again through other’s kind actions; not being preached to about how I need to be saved….
Yes, work is a wonderful place to show His mercies and generous love! Especially since it is, as you note, a place where we can be tempted to be self-serving.
You are so right, Iris. I smiled when I read your post. Your heart shines through, even at work. Wish you had been at my office when I worked there for six years!:-)
Love the verse, too. I need to meditate on that one every single day.