Be Ye Kind
As a young woman, actually as a twelve year old girl, the first class I ever taught was for the 2 and 3 year olds class. The lessons taught were so simple. Basically the titles were made up of three words. The first one I recall was "Be Ye Kind". Being kind is such a simple thing. It takes little effort but repeatedly we see people act and behave as if they are the boss of the world.
That reminds me of a story my younger sister told me. One of her granddaughters questioned her authority over her mother. My sister said that yes when her mom was little she did have the right to give her advice and even tell her to do things like make your bed, or pick up your room. Then my sister added that now that her daughter was an adult so no longer told her what to do. She endeavored as a good mom to allow her daughter to correct her own children. The granddaughter who had made the inquiry looked crestfallen she sighed and said, "I thought you were the boss of the world." That's a little side journey. I tend to do that.
Kindness is such an easy thing to do. It requires a real effort if the person you are dealing with thinks that being kind is a sign of weakness. Actually, demonstrations of kindness reach far into our lives and help not only ourselves but also those that we extend kindness to. Just a smile can make or break someones day. I remember many years ago having a grocery basket filled with two little boys and another one with my new daughter. I was putting groceries into the second basket. We had a little train of baskets going down the aisles of the store. As I approached the area to check out, I must have touched a woman who was negotiating the same area with my front basket. She turned to me and said in the most hateful way, "If you do that again, you're going to wind up on the floor." I immediately apologized and attempted to get away from her. Her words were cutting and I saw something inside her that I did not like. Hatred, anger and violence were her companions. All of it stemmed from a deep since of insecurity, fear and self-hatred. I bowed my head and prayed. I longed for a friend to show up just for the encouragement. As I looked up I was so surprised for right in front of me stood my very best friend in the world. She said, why don't you let me take the boys home with me. Of course, I took her up on the offer. She took my boys and I completed my shopping quickly and my daughter and I headed to her house. Neither one of us lived in the area in which I was shopping, which made me know that God had a hand in this as He always does.
My friend's kind words overrode any sense of threat or sadness that I felt. Immediately I was strong again. Over the years I have remembered this story because it shows the power of God's love and the power of kindness. I love reading in the scriptures of God's loving kindnesses. There is such power in love. God arranged for my friend to be in the same town I was and to show up just as I needed to have someone who knew how to be kind.
I don't know what effect that kindness does to the lives of others but I know that it has helped me through many a storm. In recent days, I have been caring for my little grandson who is now three. His mom sent me a note she received from the teacher. It complimented Luke for his demonstration of kindness and thoughtfulness to a little girl who had hurt herself on the playground. He immediately ran to the teacher and said my friend needs help. The teacher was so impressed by his act of kindness that she told his Mom about it.
There is such a need in this day and time to demonstrate the power of this one small act. Be ye kind. This is not the time to attack and mistreat others. America has for the most part been a generous, kind and compassionate nation. Sadly, we see that demolished day after day by unending reports on childish and terrifying behavior among those who are adults. This should not be. It is far easier to smile than to frown. It is sad to see our nation mocked for its lack of caring and concern for the rest of our world. The world is interconnected now. It is futile to think that we can turn by to another time. The genie is already out of the bottle. We need to go back to our roots as human beings and begin to once again care for those about us. All of us have had help. It makes me smile inside when I hear people talk about all of their great achievements. I shake my head at the ignorance. Someone ahead of us discovered electricity. Someone before us discovered transportation. Someone before us felt the need for cars and paved roads. Everyone of us has a part of all that has been accomplished. No matter if you're a ditch digger, a corporate executive, a congressman, or a famous author, engineer, doctor, someone paved the way for you. We are interconnected and what we do affects others. We do not go this way alone. It is foolhardy for us to think that we are something special. All of us are special in the eyes of God. We all deserve to have a little kindness poured into our lives.
We will stand before God for the way we treat one another. Jesus spoke of it quite vividly when he described the death of the rich man. All of us will leave this planet. What we leave behind is really going to be up to us. Try to spread a little kindness. It costs nothing and the benefit is immeasurable and that my friend is the real Truth.
That reminds me of a story my younger sister told me. One of her granddaughters questioned her authority over her mother. My sister said that yes when her mom was little she did have the right to give her advice and even tell her to do things like make your bed, or pick up your room. Then my sister added that now that her daughter was an adult so no longer told her what to do. She endeavored as a good mom to allow her daughter to correct her own children. The granddaughter who had made the inquiry looked crestfallen she sighed and said, "I thought you were the boss of the world." That's a little side journey. I tend to do that.
Kindness is such an easy thing to do. It requires a real effort if the person you are dealing with thinks that being kind is a sign of weakness. Actually, demonstrations of kindness reach far into our lives and help not only ourselves but also those that we extend kindness to. Just a smile can make or break someones day. I remember many years ago having a grocery basket filled with two little boys and another one with my new daughter. I was putting groceries into the second basket. We had a little train of baskets going down the aisles of the store. As I approached the area to check out, I must have touched a woman who was negotiating the same area with my front basket. She turned to me and said in the most hateful way, "If you do that again, you're going to wind up on the floor." I immediately apologized and attempted to get away from her. Her words were cutting and I saw something inside her that I did not like. Hatred, anger and violence were her companions. All of it stemmed from a deep since of insecurity, fear and self-hatred. I bowed my head and prayed. I longed for a friend to show up just for the encouragement. As I looked up I was so surprised for right in front of me stood my very best friend in the world. She said, why don't you let me take the boys home with me. Of course, I took her up on the offer. She took my boys and I completed my shopping quickly and my daughter and I headed to her house. Neither one of us lived in the area in which I was shopping, which made me know that God had a hand in this as He always does.
My friend's kind words overrode any sense of threat or sadness that I felt. Immediately I was strong again. Over the years I have remembered this story because it shows the power of God's love and the power of kindness. I love reading in the scriptures of God's loving kindnesses. There is such power in love. God arranged for my friend to be in the same town I was and to show up just as I needed to have someone who knew how to be kind.
I don't know what effect that kindness does to the lives of others but I know that it has helped me through many a storm. In recent days, I have been caring for my little grandson who is now three. His mom sent me a note she received from the teacher. It complimented Luke for his demonstration of kindness and thoughtfulness to a little girl who had hurt herself on the playground. He immediately ran to the teacher and said my friend needs help. The teacher was so impressed by his act of kindness that she told his Mom about it.
There is such a need in this day and time to demonstrate the power of this one small act. Be ye kind. This is not the time to attack and mistreat others. America has for the most part been a generous, kind and compassionate nation. Sadly, we see that demolished day after day by unending reports on childish and terrifying behavior among those who are adults. This should not be. It is far easier to smile than to frown. It is sad to see our nation mocked for its lack of caring and concern for the rest of our world. The world is interconnected now. It is futile to think that we can turn by to another time. The genie is already out of the bottle. We need to go back to our roots as human beings and begin to once again care for those about us. All of us have had help. It makes me smile inside when I hear people talk about all of their great achievements. I shake my head at the ignorance. Someone ahead of us discovered electricity. Someone before us discovered transportation. Someone before us felt the need for cars and paved roads. Everyone of us has a part of all that has been accomplished. No matter if you're a ditch digger, a corporate executive, a congressman, or a famous author, engineer, doctor, someone paved the way for you. We are interconnected and what we do affects others. We do not go this way alone. It is foolhardy for us to think that we are something special. All of us are special in the eyes of God. We all deserve to have a little kindness poured into our lives.
We will stand before God for the way we treat one another. Jesus spoke of it quite vividly when he described the death of the rich man. All of us will leave this planet. What we leave behind is really going to be up to us. Try to spread a little kindness. It costs nothing and the benefit is immeasurable and that my friend is the real Truth.
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