Articles
Be Kind
Be Kind
Corey Sawyers
My oldest son, Garrett, is fifteen, and soon to be sixteen. As such, he is learning to drive. This process began years ago as he manned tractors and trucks around our small farm. When he turned fifteen and legally could, it made its way to the roads of Tennessee which had few drivers in our rural setting. As is generally the case with small-town America, those drivers were typically friendly and laidback. Things dramatically changed when we moved to Denver. As I have coached Garrett in navigating six very full lanes of traffic in the fast-paced hustle and bustle of a big city, I find myself amazed at the type of driver he is. He is KIND. He lets people in and over who are trying to merge. He slows down to let people pass him. He is KIND! He shows more KINDNESS than most any other driver I see on Wadsworth (including me!). Just the other day as this was dawning on me, I thought to myself how unusual it must seem to other drivers.
Please do not misunderstand. None of my sons, including Garrett, are perfect. No preacher’s child is because no one’s child is. Still, in this particular area at least, he is an excellent example to other drivers and has even taught his driving teacher daddy a thing or two. It is a lesson we need to learn as preachers, as teachers, and as Christians. We need to be more KIND.
Galatians 5:22 tells us that one aspect of the Fruit of the Spirit is KINDNESS. He goes on to say that because we belong to Christ, we should no longer be so full of ourselves that we are picking fights with others. We should be KIND! The woman of Proverbs 31 is said to have the teaching of KINDNESS on her tongue (verse 26). Earlier in that book of wisdom, we are told not to let KINDNESS depart from us (3:3). It is coupled with truth in that verse. It is not true to say we must choose to either be kind OR stand for truth. We must have both truth and KINDNESS (Ephesians 4:15). In fact, KINDNESS is an attribute that is required of children of God (Colossians 3:12).
Once, at a dinner party famed American novelist William Faulkner was attending, a polite man pulled a dining chair out for one of the women, who, busy talking with other guests, was unaware that he had done so. She fell to the floor, surprised and chagrined. Reportedly. Faulkner sat down on the floor with her. The gesture – noble, tender, humane – was much in his character. Faulkner could not abide harm or diminishment. He preferred to get on the floor with the fallen.
Just like Faulkner, what an example we can be for Christ when we are willing to get on the floor with others who have fallen. Just like my teenage driver, what a difference we can make when we stand out in an unkind world by being KIND. It is not only a good idea, but it is also what God expects of us. “And what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, to love KINDNESS, And to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8).
