Kindness part 2
So this was fortuitious timing. Last night I was stricken with a terrible pain in my left side. So bad that it woke me up in the middle of the night. I told my mom, "Something's wrong, I need to go to the hospital." And she didn't hesitate. She drove me to the hospital. Kindness. Being there for someone in a time of need. But she had to go to work. So my younger (not my little) brother Ben drove all the way up to the hospital. To sit with me. Make sure all was well. Bring me home safe. Its a kidney stone, for those who really want to know, and while I always say, "Family is forever," I'm very grateful of how my family has wrapped me up in love and kindness. It really puts things in a real world perspective. And for me, I'm a guy who doesn't like to ask for help. Probably because I don't like to NEED help. But at the same time, I truly believe that asking for help when you need it is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign of wisdom. Because its not good for man to be alone. I honestly don't know if I could have driven myself to the hospital. And thank God I didn't have to find out. Because people need me. One little boy, my son, in particular. So I guess what I'm trying to say today is that BEING kind is kind of the whole point... but don't feel bad about RECEIVING kindness. God showed (and continues to show) us His grace through His kindness. Mercy is not getting what you deserve, right? And grace is getting what you don't deserve. But one of my favorite movies taught me, "Deserve's got nothing to do with it." Instead of trying to figure out of someone deserves it, or if someone has earned it... just be kind. Be kind, please rewind, right? For those of us old enough to remember Blockbuster. Just give what you've got. Let the kindness that God has given you be the kindness that you give to others. And it doesn't have to be family. Again, thank God for my family. I'm blessed. But Jesus spoke of the greatest love a man can have being laying your life down for your friends. And (I believe it was) Abraham Lincoln who said, "I destroy my enemies by making them my friends." Kill 'em with kindness. Kill 'em all. Leave people speechless because you gave them more than THEY think they deserved. Love is so powerful, kindness for kindness's sake, that it will knock people's socks off. It will show people a more excellent way. And when you see a more excellent way--when you see something better than what you've got, what you've settled for--you can walk that way. You can walk by faith (not by sight) and you can live by faith. You can trust that God is good, and merciful, and kind because He proves Himself to be good, and merciful, and kind. He doesn't expect us to just blindly follow Him. No, He showed us the way. On the cross. By laying His life down for us, His friends. And we can do the same to each other. Not by actually dying for people--though that can and will and does happen--but by dropping everything when someone is in need. By taking them to the hospital in the middle of the night. Or even by giving them an ear to hear when they need to talk. A hug. A smile. Random acts of kindness that aren't actually that random. Purposeful acts of kindness!