Kindness part 5
I started this Rant series with the idea of, "How do I be kind when what I want is in direct opposition to what you want?" And that's where I want to end it. We've looked at a lot of different aspects of kindness. What it means, how it's possible. But, again, I want to really hit the idea of denying myself in order to give you what you need. Philippians 2:3 kind of says it perfectly. "Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves." I mean, really, that's it in a nutshell. You can either be "right" and cause strife... or you can be kind. You can either build your own kingdom and always try to get get get... or you can know and believe you already have it all and you can share what you've got. You can try to climb over people to make yourself seem higher, or (in lowliness of mind) you can esteem others better than yourself. And listen, I'm not saying you have to get down on yourself. Being humble isn't thinking less of yourself. It's simply thinking of yourself less. Being Christ-centered by being people-centered. And when you love others, I'm telling you, that's the best way to feel love. We receive it right? But we receive it in order to release it. It's more blessed to GIVE than to receive. You have to receive first, so you have something to give, but receiving is not the be-all end-all. So when it comes to dealing with other people--being kind to other people--what it really comes down to is making the decision to sacrifice everything you are and everything you have. And you can't do that without letting the mind of Christ (that's already in you) BE in you. Remember when Jesus knelt down and washed His disciples feet? He humbled Himself. Not because they were better than Him... but because He loved them and He wanted something better for them. Jesus said it this way, "For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45). And then, of course, there was Jesus' prayer in the garden of Gethsemane. "And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, "O my Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt" (Matthew 26:39). He was putting others first. Just like He always did. Because Jesus is the embodiement of love. Literally God in the flesh. Love in a body. He did everything He did because He was moved with compassion and motivated by love. He didn't think He was better than anybody. And He knew it was more important to do what others needed than what He wanted. That's what love is. Love is giving. Laying your life down for your friends. Esteeming others higher than yourself. Denying yourself so that you can stop trying to get and start giving. Kindness means usefullness. And unless your meeting a need, all the nice words in the world aren't that useful. Again, sometimes the right word can be useful. But my point is, we have everything we need. Because we know and believe we're connected to the source of love. The God who IS love. So we can be kind. We can put others first. And here's a secret about the sacrificial nature of love--it IS a sacrifice, but if you love someone doing whatever it takes for them doesn't FEEL like a sacrifice. It's not hard, it's our nature. It only gets twisted when we have expectations of what's supposed to happen. Perfect love casts out all fear because it loves for the sake of loving. We don't have to be afraid of what will happen. We can love without expectation and without limits!