"Be ye kind to one another..."
Wouldn't most agree with this? Don't we teach our children this simple principle. We hear it in lots of different ways. One that sticks out in my mind and I have heard so many times:"If you can't say something nice, don't...."
True kindness though, the kind that makes you stop and wonder, the kind you know deep down (and if you were being honest) you don't deserve, the kind that goes far beyond a nice action, the kind that alters your heart and soul, where does kindness like that come from?
I was introduced to the singer/song writer Andrew Ripp last year through our involvement with Young Life. God has definitely gifted him with a brilliant mind for not only writing beautiful words but with an untouchable ability to put those words into music....a music that has the ability to cause me to stop and worship.
As I was listening to one of his songs this morning I was so gently reminded of God's kindness towards me. There is a verse in one of his songs that says:
"You carried all my shame when you called my name. I'm gonna be there near or far, I'm gonna meet you where you are. I am not the same."
Upon hearing this I simply cannot keep from singing, praising, thanking, worshiping.
I'm not sure how Mr. Ripp meant it, but when I hear it I replace some of the lines so it reads like this:
"Jesus carried all my shame when He called my name. He's gonna be there near or far, Jesus will meet me where I am, I am not the same."
I am so humbled by this truth. Jesus seeks after me, Jesus runs after me, Jesus comes near to me, Jesus meets me where I am and Jesus changes me. It is not the other way around.
I am so thankful that I serve a loving God who loved me before I sought Him, He loved me before I chose Him, He loved me enough to take my sin from me and bear it for me. He loved me because He loved me and I am His beloved.
The kindness of the Utmost is all around me. I see it in the colors of the sunrise, I hear it in the giggles of little children, I feel it in the sweet peace of a deep sleep, it resonates in the change of a new heart.
*It is His kindness that leads me to repentance.
"Be ye kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you."
Ephesians 4:32
It is not in my nature to be kind, it is only Jesus in me that allows for kindness and Jesus in me that provides forgiveness when I fail at loving others (often). But...I can rest easy knowing that because of Jesus, and only because of Jesus, is there hope for repentance, kindness, joy, peace....life.
Andrew Ripp
"You Will Find Me"
*Romans 2:4
