I’ve never known any human being, high or humble, who ever regretted, when nearing life’s end, having done kindly deeds. But I have known more than one millionaire who became haunted by the realization that they had led selfish lives. B. C. Forbes
back it up with bible
Zechariah 7:9b Shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother.
Ephesians 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
Luke 6:30-34 Give to every man that asketh of thee; and of him that taketh away thy goods ask them not again. And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise. For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? For sinners also love those that love them. And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? For sinners also do even the same. And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? For sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again.
2 Corinthians 6:4a,6 But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience…By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned [unpretended, sincere].
core christianity
I pulled into a parking space at Wal-mart. An elderly lady–more elderly than I–stood next to her open trunk and was laboriously lifting her purchases from her shopping cart and placing them into her trunk. Just as I swung open my door, another lady appeared. She was on her way into the store, but she stopped to offer the elderly lady assistance. “Can I help you with those?” she offered as she simultaneously lifted the bags and placed them carefully into the lady’s trunk. The lady was thrilled to have the help; she even said, “I wish I could take you home with me.” The Samaritan lady said, she would gladly do that if she didn’t have to get back to the office.
“She has done a good work for Me.” Mark 14:6 I thought about that kind, unselfish act. She only had a few minutes and would have to return to work, but she took time to help the other lady in the 108-degree Oklahoma heat. As hot as it was, most of us think about how fast we can get from our air-conditioned cars to the air-conditioned store. I thought how pleased Jesus would be of her random act of kindness. How often do we even see the plight of another as we go about our day? Do we even consider stopping to help someone like that? Do we ever see those kindnesses as doing a “good work for” Jesus? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we did?
We do not have the physical Lord present with us today. Yet, as we go about our lives, we are given many opportunities to do kind deeds. When we look beyond ourselves and do any kindness in His name, we have “done a good work for” Him.
PRAYER: Lord, thank you for sacrificing all so we might live eternally with You. Thank you for the opportunity You give us to serve You by helping others. Let us never be so busy we cannot stop and do acts of sacrificial kindness. (Hariette Petersen)
previously published
Being kind to others is being kind to the Lord!
When you show people love in little ways, when you show people little courtesies and are well-mannered around people, it’s really showing love to the Lord, because people are His creation and He loves them dearly. When you take good care of people, show them love, do loving things for them, treat them with courtesy and good manners, this is honoring and respecting the Lord. You’re being loving and kind to the Lord. You’re telling the Lord that you love His creation, His people, and you want to be loving to them not only for their sakes, which is a good enough reason, but also out of love for Him.
Ask the Lord for the love you need and do your best to put it into practice! There are hundreds of things you can do throughout the day, little things that make someone’s life more beautiful because of your kindness. If you follow Jesus’ golden rule to “do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” then you’ll be kind and courteous. When you pray and ask the Lord to help you be more loving, at the same time ask Him how you can be more loving, and then start working on those practical areas.
That’s like putting feet to your prayers. As you do your part, He’ll put the love in your heart, and soon it will become a loving habit to do those things.
You can’t just ask the Lord for more love but then not work on it or do the practical things the Lord shows you to do. Neither can you just try to work it up in the flesh, or it won’t come across right. It’ll just be dead works, a superficial tradition without the spirit. You’ve got to both ask the Lord for the love you need and do your best to put it into practice! (Success with People)
He’s given us a Spirit of Love, but we can’t just sit around and wait for it to be manifested. He said that it’s like all gifts--it has to be exercised, and we have to take that first step of faith in reaching out and starting to show that love to others! He specifically tells us to “begin with deeds of kindness, words of love, touches of affection, with the showing of appreciation, with the speaking of kind words to one another…”He specifically says to think good thoughts of one another and not to look down on each other, because He says that He loves others just as much as He loves you. The Lord has not put the doorknob too high, He’s made it very easy! All we have to do is say the little words, smile the little smiles, touch the little touches, do the little deeds of kindness, and as we all do them together, those little things will grow and grow and will be multiplied, and this love that we extend to each other will do great miracles as we become bonded together in His Love. (A New Day of Love!)
make it personal
Do I do enough by way of kind deeds? If not, why not? Please tell me 3 specific kind deeds that I can do today.
