Women’s Devotion: Kindness

 “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.” Ephesians 4:29

 “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:32

I’m noticing a theme emerging in many areas of my life recently. This time of year there are many expected ones, such as back to school, the return of fall sports, and pumpkin spiced everything just around the corner. But the theme that seems loudest for me right now is simply kindness, and it is one that is currently front and center in my personal life, church life, and family life.

The gym I attend regularly has declared this month the month of “Random Acts of Kindness” encouraging us to reflect on the benefit it has not only to others, but to our own mental and physical health. Kindness is contagious, as it helps strengthen our community though a domino effect of positive actions and emotions. The simple act of showing kindness to others is a win-win for our health and the health of others.

Pastor Sarah shared recently in her sermon about communication and “The Right Ingredients” and it made me consider how my routine meal planning and food prep in the kitchen isn’t just one more thing on my endless to-do list, but can be a way to show kindness and love for my family. Even outside of the kitchen, kindness seems to be the secret ingredient of how to live our lives in a way that we can build each other up, give grace, forgive, and be imitators of God.

The weekly children’s coloring sheet in worship also reflected the message with giant text of “BE KIND” with children smiling and holding hands. As I watched my elementary-aged daughter enthusiastically color it while listening to Pastor Sarah’s message, I couldn’t help but reflect on a story she told me the week before. She told me in her new classroom her teacher read a story about the importance of kindness but soon after a classmate behaved in a way that wasn’t kind to others and also hurt my daughter’s feelings. I remember discussing this with her and while my daughter suggested that she thought her classmate maybe just wasn’t paying attention to the story the teacher was reading, we ended up agreeing that perhaps the student is still learning how to choose kindness first, just like all of us are, children and adults alike, and so often we all need nudges and reminders. We also discussed how we have the superpower to be kind and choose to respond with grace and forgiveness even when it seems hard.

Dear Lord, I know my words and actions matter, so please continue to surround me with reminders of kindness messages that help me be one step closer to being an imitator of you. Amen

Written by Kristin Blomendahl