The greatest commandment Jesus himself taught us is to Love the Lord with all our heart, soul and mind and to love others as we love ourselves. Love is a multifacitated noun that is broken down for us in 1 Corinthians 13. Over the next few weeks I will continue to go through God's top ten on love.
Last week (actually 2 weeks ago) we saw the attitude of love is patient and now we see that with that attitude there is another attitude with an action. The second attribute of love we find in 1 Corinthians 13 is "kind". The action is to be kind. What does that mean? To be kind is to act with good deeds towards others. To be kind is to expressing goodwill towards someone else. It is to think about what gives someone else pleasure. In order to act kind towards someone we must have an attitude of benevolence. The actions shown in love are intended for benefiting others rather than profiting for ourselves.
The opposite of kind is cruel. This brings to mind the fictional character Cruella de Vil from 101 Dalmatians. Cruella's name is a play on the words cruel and devil. Most of us have watched as she plays the villian in this Disney animated film. Cruella's goal is to steal puppies and then slaughter and skin them. Of course through a series of events, the puppies outsmart the villian and good overcomes evil. Cruella was only interested in her own financial gain without regard to those she was stealing from and the puppies she was disposing of. I share this to paint a picture of what the opposite of kind can look like.
In thinking ahead ask your self the following questions:
1) Who am I to love today?
2) Are my actions benevolent towards this person?
3) What relationships am I not being kind?
Father,
We love and adore you. You are the great "I am". Your ways are perfect and your love is without error. Thank you for always being kind. We know that kindness sometimes is letting us grow through our mistakes and always being present with your hand outstretch for us to reach back up to you. Reveal in my heart today where I am not being kind, change me Lord.
Amen
Loving you all!
Annie
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