Author Washington Irving said, A kind heart is a fountain of gladness, making everything in its vicinity freshen into smiles. Wherever we walk today we will see the fallen countenances of troubled people (perhaps our own face reflected in our morning mirror.) The ravages of sin have a way of reminding people just how desperate their lot is, and the devil has a way of making them think they have failed, are alone and have been abandoned - those lonely thoughts and contemplations can cloud hearts which not only cannot remember how to smile, but feel as though there is no further reason for them to do so: Jesus said, Each day has enough trouble of its own (Matthew 6:34b,) and without the intervention of others who overlook faults and love regardless, days would become little more than fruitless battlegrounds. But, we have a God who cares! Casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you, says Peter. (1 Peter 5:7) When sin reminds us of anything it should remind us that we are loved, and not forgotten. But God demonstrates His love for us that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8) And, because we are loved, Jesus set us free from sin and its debt. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit. (Titus 3:4-5) Our kindness cannot save but it can lead one to rescue; it can change a day. As we have received let us also mete out - Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy, our Lord instructed on the Sermon Mount. (Matthew 5:7) Look for opportunity to pour kindness into the lives of others - everyone desperately has need of it. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. (Ephesians 4:32) And, when we walk through our lives today, we just might see the people in our vicinity freshen into smiles.
Posted on: Fri, 25 Oct 2013 11:10:49 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015