Wednesday, December 19, 2018

The ONE gift everyone must have!


Christmas is just a week away!  Can you believe it?  I can’t!  Time has just flown by.  I’m not even finished Christmas shopping yet.  I’m usually on it, but not this year.  I’ve been shopping later than usual and as a result I’ve been bumping into a lot of grumpy shoppers and drivers.  It’s crazy!  Everywhere I go I’m afraid of getting hit… by other cars driving wildly, by shopping carts being rushed through the store to grab last minute deals, or actual shoppers who are pushing their way through the aisles unaware of those around them.  It doesn’t seem very fun or festive to me.

Gifts… what do you get those hard to buy people?  Whatever you end up getting is never what they like, want, or need.  You know those second hand stores, thrift shops, and Good Will stores have to be flooded after Christmas with unwanted items… or maybe everyone waits until their spring cleaning days to unload it all.  What a waste!


I’ve been thinking hard on this and I think I have come up with one gift everyone will like.  It’s a must have item for everyone!  So… be sure to add it to your Christmas list if you haven’t done so already.  It’s something that will make a long lasting impact on all who receive it, yet it cost us nothing.


What is it?  It’s something we can all do that is free and easy for most if they try… BE KIND!  I know it sounds silly, but how many of us look around while busying ourselves with the holidays to notice those around us.

Do you see the lonely ones who are celebrating this season with out a loved one this year?  Do you see those families who are being ripped a part by divorce?  Christmas will never be the same for them.  Do you see the sick who are struggling through wondering if this year will be their last?  Do you see the overwhelmed people looking for the perfect gifts all the while drowning in a sea of debt?  The broken, the hurting, the hopeless, the grieving, the lost… they are all there.


What can you do to reach them, love them, see them this holiday season?  BE KIND!   Ask God to help you be engaged in what is going on around you instead of being consumed with your list of things to do before Christmas comes.  Ask God to put people on your heart to pray for, send an encouraging note to, buy a meal for, visit, or call.  BE KIND every chance you get!  During this season especially kindness is rare. 

“In a season filled with selfishness,
Choose to BE KIND!”

Recently I went to the post office to mail out some Christmas packages.  I was hoping to mail them sooner, (because I knew the lines would be long at this time of year) but I got sick with the flu.  Normally it probably wouldn’t be a problem for most, but our post office is very small.  The lobby area is pretty much a narrow rectangle.  There are a bunch of individual post office boxes around it and a window where one lady sits to assist you.  While we wait for our turn in a single file line (that runs from the check out window to the door) people are coming and going like crazy.  They are checking their mail boxes (in front or behind you), grabbing boxes or envelopes to purchase, and dropping off mail.   Space is invaded often.  It is not a place for grumpy people to congregate… that’s for sure!

I may have been a little grumpy that day from being sick.  However, I didn’t act on my grumpiness, I just held it all in.  I was frustrated!  My mind was going wild with silent comments … “This is taking WAY too long!”  “Isn’t there anyone else back there who can help us?” “How dare that lady send out 8 boxes now!”  “Ugh!!!”  I didn’t feel good and I was feeling very impatient. 

After a few moments, I noticed a stir at the front of the line.  A young adult was ushered to a table near by to finish getting his box ready to go out.  He had a book he was trying to mail and nothing was ready.  He was completely unprepared.  I was shocked to see the people in line jump into high gear to assist him.  One lady gave him bubble wrap, another packing tape, and the man in front of me offered to help him wrap it all up to go.  I was surprised at their kindness and a little ashamed at my grouchy demeanor.  Even though I was sick, I still needed a lot more KINDNESS in my heart. 

Did you know that “kindness” is a fruit of the spirit?  As we grow in our relationship with God, kindness should naturally flow out of our lives.  If you are short on kindness lately, you might want to check in with your heavenly father.  He is a great gardener of our hearts.  He knows just what to do to get things growing right inside of us.

Galatians 5:22-23 says…
 “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, KINDNESS, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (NLT)

            
Did you notice how KINDNESS is packed in their between patience and goodness?  I don’t think that was by accident.  I don’t know about you, but sometimes it takes a lot of “patience” to be KIND.  What about goodness?  What does that mean? It can be defined as an “uprightness in heart and life”.  If each fruit builds on the next (one naturally leading to the other), then we can assume that we can’t truly be good until we are first patient and KIND.

Do you want to see a spiritual revival break out in your city?  Stir up KINDNESS and let it grow in your heart and overflow to others.  Let’s be Jesus with skin on this holiday season!  Give the gift of BEING KIND! 

Living to leave a legacy,
Julie