Category: Kindness

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Letters of Love

Don’t you love getting personalized gifts? Something that was made or designed just for you…

It could be something to wear, eat or decorate with but you know that it is specifically for you. Cards made by your kids, grandkids or your spouse are the most treasured items we have.

Now let me ask you this. When you read the Bible is it just a book that you read because you think you should or is it a personalized love letter that you can’t put down?

If it’s the former let’s change it to the latter. God inspired its writing so He could tell you how much He loves you.

Take this passage in Ephesians 2.

“Once we were also ruled by the selfish desires of our bodies and minds. We had made God angry, and we were going to be punished like everyone else.

4-5 But God was merciful! We were dead because of our sins, but God loved us so much that he made us alive with Christ, and God’s wonderful kindness is what saves you. 6 God raised us from death to life with Christ Jesus, and he has given us a place beside Christ in heaven. 7 God did this so that in the future world he could show how truly good and kind he is to us because of what Christ Jesus has done. 8 You were saved by faith in God, who treats us much better than we deserve. This is God’s gift to you, and not anything you have done on your own. 9 It isn’t something you have earned, so there is nothing you can brag about. 10 God planned for us to do good things and to live as he has always wanted us to live. That’s why he sent Christ to make us what we are.” Ephesians 2:3-10 CEV

Please go back and read those verses again but this time substitute the words I, my, me for the words we, our, us and you. Now, go back one more time and read it again only this time read it out loud. I want you to hear, really hear, the message of God’s love with your own ears.

Personalize God’s word. Let it sink down deep into your heart and let the Holy Spirit begin to reveal to you just how special you are to your heavenly Father.

“You were (I was) saved by faith in God, who treats us (me) much better than we (I) deserve. This is God’s gift to you (me), and not anything you (I) have done on your (my) own. 9 It isn’t something you (I) have earned, so there is nothing you (I) can brag about.” my paraphrase

I have several different places I read in the Bible each morning. Each of them reminds me of God’s goodness and love. I don’t want to start the day without that being my foremost thought.

“This is how God showed his love to us: He sent his only Son into the world to give us life through him. 10 True love is God’s love for us, not our love for God. He sent his Son as the way to take away our sins.” I John 4:9-10 ERV

Amen!

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Moving Forward

Yesterday afternoon I checked in with a friend to find out how their travels had been. You see, they came by yesterday morning before they left on their trip and we asked how far they had planned to go on the first day, they said “we’ll stop in Albuquerque”.

Well, they made it. She said that there destination is still 650 miles away and they would be breaking that portion into two days. Sounded like a wise decision, no point in wearing yourself out the first few days.

Move forward, step by step or mile by mile.

Why do we get discouraged, frustrated or exhausted as we make forward progress in life? Often times, we set unreasonable goals and burn out before we reach them.

Dave and I used to travel a lot. We would drive from Montana to Arizona, it was an 1100 mile trip and we’d drive it in two days. Almost 700 miles the first and a little over 400 the second. Why not? Afterall, if we didn’t push that hard we were “burning daylight”.

Now that we are older and wiser, we take our time and we arrive in a better frame of mind, having rested along the way.

“Jesus has the power of God. And his power has given us everything we need to live a life devoted to God. We have these things because we know him. Jesus chose us by his glory and goodness, 4 through which he also gave us the very great and rich gifts that he promised us. With these gifts you can share in being like God. And so you will escape the ruin that comes to people in the world because of the evil things they want.

5 Because you have these blessings, do all you can to add to your life these things: to your faith add goodness; to your goodness add knowledge; 6 to your knowledge add self-control; to your self-control add patience; to your patience add devotion to God; 7 to your devotion add kindness toward your brothers and sisters in Christ, and to this kindness add love. 8 If all these things are in you and growing, you will never fail to be useful to God. You will produce the kind of fruit that should come from your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” II Peter 1:3-8 ERV

We have been given a spiritual road map which leads to our victory in Christ. Our first stop is where we come to understand that God has given us everything we need, great and precious gifts, for living successfully in this world.

Because these blessings put us on the right path, our next stop lands us in a place where our faith grows. As we travel a little farther, we increase in goodness and then knowledge. We now have knowledge that God has given us all we need, we stop to gain self-control and patience. We head out from patience, knowing we can trust God with our circumstances, arriving at a place of deep devotion to God.

Our devotion to the Father takes us to a place of kindness towards those around us and that kindness brings us to our destination of love.

As we move forward on the road map that God has designed for us, we will arrive successfully at our destination of being Christ-like in our words and actions.

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Learned Behavior

Yesterday we found ourselves in deep conversation with friends. We were talking about prejudice and how it’s a learned behavior. I made a statement about learned behavior and if we learn it we can also unlearn it.

It’s not easy but with God’s grace, He can transform our hearts.

I work hard to get passed outward appearances. What people look like, how the sound, educated or unlearned, political leanings, rich or poor, young or old – none of it makes any difference to God.

“God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who has faith in him will have eternal life and never really die.” John 3:16 CEV

“ And when you were baptized, it was as though you had put on Christ in the same way you put on new clothes. 28 Faith in Christ Jesus is what makes each of you equal with each other, whether you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a free person, a man or a woman.” Galatians 3:27-28 CEV

If I had been with Jesus when he was preaching and teaching would I have been accepting of the woman in adultery, would I have been willing to eat dinner with Zacchaeus, would I have even talked to the woman at the well long enough to find out that she needed a friend or a Savior?

Just being honest with you. Too many times I have judged people by their outward appearance without seeing who Jesus sees. Maybe you are better than me in these circumstances.

The religious leaders of Jesus’ day judged Him unacceptable because He didn’t keep their religious traditions. Jesus healed people on the Sabbath day, He had dinner with tax collectors and other sinners. He was unconventional, He allowed Himself to be touched by lepers and the demon possessed.

He came to love the world!

The Apostle Paul gave us this instruction:

“If our faith is strong, we should be patient with the Lord’s followers whose faith is weak. We should try to please them instead of ourselves. 2 We should think of their good and try to help them by doing what pleases them. 3 Even Christ did not try to please himself. But as the Scriptures say, ‘The people who insulted you also insulted me.’ 4 And the Scriptures were written to teach and encourage us by giving us hope. 5 God is the one who makes us patient and cheerful. I pray that he will help you live at peace with each other, as you follow Christ. 6 Then all of you together will praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

7 Honor God by accepting each other, as Christ has accepted you. 8 I tell you that Christ came as a servant of the Jews to show that God has kept the promises he made to their famous ancestors. Christ also came, 9 so that the Gentiles would praise God for being kind to them…

13 I pray that God, who gives hope, will bless you with complete happiness and peace because of your faith. And may the power of the Holy Spirit fill you with hope.” Romans 15:1-13 CEV

We are always going to have different opinions over politics, money, education, appearance, lifestyle, doctrines but those differences should never stop us from loving those whom God created.

We need to have the same mind as Christ in this. He hated sin so much that He died to pay the price for atonement but He loved the sinner so much that He willingly went to the cross.

If we are guilty of learned behavior let it be the behavior we see modeled by Christ and His unconditional love!

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Be Filled

Yesterday I prepared a coleslaw for a bbq dinner we will share with friends tonight. This particular coleslaw has a marinated dressing, unlike most that have a mayonnaise or creamy dressing.

After it had been in the refrigerator for a while I decided to sample it and make sure it had the flavor I intended. When I put it back in the fridge I noticed there was a sugar ring on the countertop, I wiped it up thinking I had been sloppy.

At noon, Dave had a small amount of coleslaw as part of his lunch. Once again, there was the syrupy ring on the countertop. Upon further investigation, I also found it on the refrigerator shelf. Unbeknownst to me, the bowl had a small crack in the bottom and the marinade was slowly seeping out.

If I hadn’t caught it in time all the good stuff would have leaked out and I would have been left with dry cabbage, bell pepper and onion.

The good stuff – how often do we unknowingly let the good stuff leak out of our lives.

“I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart;  I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done.
2 I will be filled with joy because of you. I will sing praises to your name, O Most High.” Psalm 9:1-2 NLT

The busy-ness of the week, the general responsibilities of life, can leave us feeling dry.

“ If you are filled with light, with no dark corners, then your whole life will be radiant, as though a floodlight were filling you with light.” Luke 11:36 NLT

“ I want you to know all about Christ’s love, although it is too wonderful to be measured. Then your lives will be filled with all that God is.” Ephesians 3:19 CEV

“ Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do. 18 Don’t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit,” Ephesians 5:17-18 NLT

It is incumbent upon us to check our lives for leaks; leaks of anger, selfishness, pride, self-righteousness, bitterness. When we find that our level of light, joy, the Holy Spirit and all that God is has begun to drain out we need to come to Him for a resupply.

Today I will be making a second batch of marinade for the coleslaw but I will also be examining my heart to make sure I’m not allowing the goodness of God to drain slowly from my character.

May we always be filled with the goodness of God!

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My Heart Speaks

How often do you listen to your heart?

I know when there are big decisions to make that I get very quiet and listen to what God is speaking to my heart. I’ve been doing this for years. When our kids were teenagers they would ask about going somewhere or doing something and Dave and I would have to say, “We don’t have a peace about that”.

More often than not, it wasn’t what they wanted to hear but we had made a commitment that if the Lord didn’t give us a peace, if we felt uneasy, we wouldn’t give them our permission. But we were also honest with them to tell them we would pray about it further and if the Lord replaced the uneasiness with peace we would give them the go ahead.

“And because you belong to Christ Jesus, God’s peace will stand guard over all your thoughts and feelings. His peace can do this far better than our human minds.” Philippians 4:7 ERV

It’s important that we keep our hearts open so we don’t miss the Lord’s direction.

“Good people have good things saved in their hearts. That’s why they say good things. But those who are evil have hearts full of evil, and that’s why they say things that are evil. What people say with their mouths comes from what fills their hearts.” Luke 6:45 ERV

Our hearts learn to speak in much the same way as a toddler learns to communicate. By repetition, a smile child learns “Mama, Dada, Drink, Cookie, No”. By the repetition of our thoughts and meditations our hearts learn to communicate. They can express love, gratitude, understanding, forgiveness, kindness and mercy or the opposite can occur, jealousy, prejudice, anger, criticism, hatred and selfishness.

“Don’t let me do what I know is wrong. Don’t let sin control me. If you help me, I can be pure and free from sin. 14 May my words and thoughts please you. Lord, you are my Rock—the one who rescues me.” Psalm 19:13-14 ERV

I know when the Lord impresses my heart with verses like these I will have an opportunity to put them into practice very soon. He is directing my thoughts and wanting me to be a living example of His words.

“Lord, help me control what I say. Don’t let me say anything bad.” Psalm 141:3 ERV

Take a few more minutes this morning to fill your heart and mouth with pleasing words. At the very least if you have to eat your words they will be sweet!

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Happy Sunday!

We should start each day with Good News. We all need encouragement to look at the bright side of life, so I want to share a couple of favorite Scriptures of mine.

“God saved us and chose us
    to be his holy people.
We did nothing
    to deserve this,
but God planned it
    because he is so kind.
Even before time began
God planned for Christ Jesus
    to show kindness to us.

10 Now Christ Jesus has come
to offer us God’s gift
    of undeserved grace.
Christ our Savior defeated death
and brought us
    the good news.
It shines like a light
and offers life
    that never ends.” II Timothy 1:9-10 CEV

God’s plan has always been to show us kindness and grace!

“9 The Lord won’t always be angry
    and point out our sins;
10 he doesn’t punish us
    as our sins deserve.

11 How great is God’s love for all
    who worship him?
Greater than the distance
    between heaven and earth!
12 How far has the Lord taken
    our sins from us?
Farther than the distance
    from east to west!

13 Just as parents are kind
    to their children,
the Lord is kind
    to all who worship him,
14 because he knows
    we are made of dust.
15 We humans are like grass
or wild flowers
    that quickly bloom.
16 But a scorching wind blows,
and they quickly wither
    to be forever forgotten.

17 The Lord is always kind
    to those who worship him,
and he keeps his promises
to their descendants” Psalm 103:9-17 CEV

Our Father is a kind promise keeper, who forgets our sins and loves us unconditionally!

As an old cowboy preacher friend used to say, “Enough said. That will preach.”

Have a happy Sunday!

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Just Keep Preaching

This morning I saw something in the book of John I hadn’t seen before. It put a big smile on my face.

John, chapter 8, Jesus is teaching in the Temple. People are curious about His teachings and hoping to see a miracle. Jesus’ teachings were like none they had ever heard. He taught with boldness and conviction from a heart of compassion.

The religious leaders were often offended by what He said and secretly they were plotting ways to silence Him. He had gained too much popularity and they saw Him as a threat.

So here He is teaching again.

“Early in the morning He went back to the house of God and all the people came to Him. He sat down and taught them.” John 8:2 NLV

The religious leaders come marching in, disrupting His teaching, with a woman. A woman they said was ““Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery.” (vs4) They were trying to trap Him, they wanted to be able to accuse Jesus of breaking the law of Moses that said those who were adulterers were to be judged and stoned.

I mean they dropped this woman right down in front of Jesus, demanding He give a judgement of her. Jesus said nothing. He just knelt down and began to write in the dirt.

“The Jewish leaders continued to ask him their question. So he stood up and said, ‘Anyone here who has never sinned should throw the first stone at her.’” (vs7).

Then he knelt down and continued writing. The story continues that those who had accused her began to leave one by one, the oldest ones first, until it was just Jesus and the woman.

Now let me say here, no one knows what Jesus wrote on the ground. It isn’t recorded in Scripture. He may have written the sins of the accusers; He may have written Scripture from the law of Moses but what He wrote either convicted them or brought them to shame. It caused them to leave.

“He looked up again and said to her, ‘Where did they all go? Did no one judge you guilty?’ 11 She answered, ‘No one, sir.’ Then Jesus said, ‘I don’t judge you either. You can go now, but don’t sin again.’” John 8:10-11 ERV

Now I know this story very well. I have imagined myself being there that day. I can see the woman – naked, ashamed, tears rolling down her cheeks, trying to cover herself. Completely humiliated. Ready to face a death sentence. All of this has made her a public spectacle.

Jesus’ words bring deliverance, not condemnation. He sends her on her way forgiven.

But here’s the part of this story I hadn’t seen before.

“Once again Jesus spoke to the people. This time he said, “I am the light for the world! Follow me, and you won’t be walking in the dark. You will have the light that gives life.” John 8:12 CEV

Jesus, undeterred by what had just happened, went back to teaching. He stayed on message. He didn’t get distracted by accusations or man’s opinion. He stayed true to the mission He had received from the Father.

Each day we have situations that will try to distract us from the mission that God has called us too. Let’s learn from Jesus and just keep preaching!

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Cup of Cold Water

Today I want to talk to you a bit about little kindnesses. In the Bible we see time and again where the Scriptures say “He was moved with compassion” or “His loving kindness”.

Loving-kindness can be when the waitress brings you the wrong meal and you don’t go off on her but you are kind in your words and sincere in your appreciation for her hard work.

Loving-kindness is when you show patience at the grocery store with the young man or woman bagging your order isn’t as efficient or speedy as you would like them to be. Or when you child hasn’t cleaned up the yard or taken out the trash like you told them to do and you find out that they were wounded by a friend or embarrassed by a teacher and they were just to distracted to get it done. So you help them finish the chore.

All of these are practical examples of loving kindness. I like doing little acts of kindness. For the most part all it costs is time but it means the world to the person receiving the help.

Jesus called it giving cups of cold water!

“Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me. And anyone who welcomes me also welcomes the one who sent me. 41 Anyone who welcomes a prophet, just because that person is a prophet, will be given the same reward as a prophet. Anyone who welcomes a good person, just because that person is good, will be given the same reward as a good person. 42 And anyone who gives one of my most humble followers a cup of cool water, just because that person is my follower, will surely be rewarded.” Matthew 10:40-42 CEV

Now I know some will look at these verses and focus on the reward but I really think what Jesus is trying to get us to see is that nothing, not matter how small, goes unnoticed to the Father. When we are reaching out in love; extending loving-kindness to those around us is an example of the Christ that lives in us.

About ten years ago I spent a few days in the hospital and when I came home I wasn’t able to do much for a week or so. Some sweet ladies brought me cups of cool water. One neighbor came over each morning to take our dog for a walk and she did my ironing. Another neighbor cook enough extra each night for Dave to enjoy a nice dinner and she did my laundry. These acts of love were priceless and the thought of them still brings a tear to my eye and a lump in my throat. Just this week Dave had outpatient surgery and friends brought lunch to us the next day.

Cups of cool water.

I ask the Father to make me more aware of those that are in need. I want the world to see my Father’s love in me.

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Make A Difference

Yesterday afternoon Dave and I went to the movies. The second time in a month and it’s not something we do very often but I’m so glad we did.

Earlier in the month we saw a movie with Kim and Austin which was fun, spending time with our kids always is. It was then we saw the preview for “Jesus Revolution”. That’s what we saw yesterday.

It really hit home with me. In the fall of 1971, I attended Biola College. Coming from Yuma I had never heard of Calvary Chapel or Pastor Chuck Smith and I had only heard of the “Jesus People” on the news. Friends invited me to go with them to some of Pastor Chuck’s Sunday evening services and a couple of times to the baptisms at the beach.

What an experience!

Hippies and regular church people praising and worshipping the Lord together. No judgement or criticism, just heartfelt worship. It was a small glimpse of heaven.

“Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” Matthew 22:37-39 NLT

Why am I sharing this with you? One, I think you would really enjoy the movie – it will stir your heart and two, it challenged me.

“For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile.” Romans 1:16 NLT

At the start of the movie there were older people attending Pastor Chuck’s church who were offended by the hippies who began coming. Sad to say, we have that with every generation. In Jesus’ day, the Pharisees and religious leaders were offended by Jesus and His group of rough fishermen, tax collectors and women of dubious reputation.

“When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. ‘Zacchaeus!’ he said. ‘Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.’ 6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. ‘He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,’ they grumbled.” Luke 19:5-7 NLT

I think we can all agree that our world needs more of the love of Jesus. The only way this will happen is for His love to flow through you and I. We are called to a purpose.

“Jesus called out to them, ‘Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!’ 20 And they left their nets at once and followed him.” Matthew 4:19-20 NLT

I pray that we will all start a Jesus Revolution, first in our hearts and then reach out to those around us.

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The Heart of Serving

Each morning it is my duty, a labor of love really, to remind myself to act like Jesus. The first conscious thought is to say, “Father, I love you. Jesus, I love you. Holy Spirit, I love you. Good morning!” and then next is to remind myself to think like Jesus and honor Him with my thoughts, my words and my actions.

“But Jesus called the disciples together and said: You know that foreign rulers like to order their people around. And their great leaders have full power over everyone they rule. 26 But don’t act like them. If you want to be great, you must be the servant of all the others. 27 And if you want to be first, you must be the slave of the rest. 28 The Son of Man did not come to be a slave master, but a slave who will give his life to rescue many people…

30 Two blind men were sitting beside the road. And when they heard that Jesus was coming their way, they shouted, “Lord and Son of David, have pity on us!” 31 The crowd told them to be quiet, but they shouted even louder, “Lord and Son of David, have pity on us!”

32 When Jesus heard them, he stopped and asked, “What do you want me to do for you?” 33 They answered, “Lord, we want to see!” 34 Jesus felt sorry for them and touched their eyes. Right away they could see, and they became his followers.” Matthew 20: 25-34

This is the verse that struck my heart. “The Son of Man did not come to be a slave master, but a slave who will give his life to rescue many people.”

I remember the first time that verse had an impact on me – I had a house full of people, was preparing for some special meetings at a hotel conference room, had my family responsibilities and my “help” had been called away. I did what any self-respecting woman would do, I started to complain. Not outwardly but from my heart; I grumbled, I murmured and I wanted to kick the dog but that wasn’t acceptable. So, I just kept going and when I finally had a few minutes to myself, I picked up my Bible and this is what I read. WOW!!

If Jesus, the Son of God, creator of the universe, said that His role in life was to serve others and not be served, how selfish and self-centered was it of me to be grumbling over my lack of help. As quickly as I could, I said “Lord forgive me, let people see Jesus through me.”

Jesus touched the blind men, restoring their sight. He was moved with the compassion of the Father and served those men with love. I want that in my life.

Today, we will all have opportunity to be served and to serve others. In both cases we should think and act like Jesus. Being grateful and appreciative when we are served, not expecting it and then serving from a loving heart, not out of guilt or an act of responsibility. We know we’re doing it with the right motive when it brings us joy and not complaint.

Thank you Lord for a servant’s heart!

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