Phyllis Nissila

“Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind.” [1]

I’ve been meditating on kindness also known as grace, forgiveness, compassion, bounty, benevolence, charitableness, openhandedness, big-heartedness, munificence, liberality, and generosity.

Because of kindness, we have love and companionship in adversity (Proverbs 17:17), the forgiveness of God (Numbers 14:19-20) through Jesus Christ (John 15:12) and we can receive and give love not tinged with arrogance, rudeness, irritability, or resentment but rather that which “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things“ (1 Corinthians 13:4-7).

It is sometimes hard to be kind to others as a flawed human living with other flawed humans. However, most of us have experienced the benefits of doing so anyway.

But the hard part is being kind to ourselves.

In a world where more often than not a list of personal faults and failures is at the bottom of every pile of angst it is hard to feel very good about or toward oneself. But consider this great gift from the Kindest of the kind:

“(As) far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12, NIV).

I have heard it said that when we bring up past sins to God (from years, months, days, or even moments ago) for which we have already asked for and received forgiveness, God replies, “What are you talking about?”

Amusing, yes, but in light of the above verse, encouraging.

And hope-filled.

Here is how and why: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). You might say that God provided His own “prescription” for what ails us—in one “application,” so to speak, that long-ago day on Calvary…

And the cure is potent still.

Directions: Apply verses to self liberally, big-heartedly, generously, compassionately, benevolently—and kindly—today and every day as needed.

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[1] Henry James

[2] Heart image: http://www.clker.com/clipart-love-is-returned.html

Other image from the public domain