Sprout: 21 Days for the Fruit of the Spirit to Bloom in Your LifeSample

The God Kind

By Thomas Miller

Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. —Psalm 63:3 NKJV

I struggled to “get” it. It was just so difficult for me to understand. I knew it was true, but it was hard for me to feel like it was true.

You see, for several years of my life, from my late teens to my early 20s, I just didn’t live for God. Although I grew up in church, I had chosen to walk away from what I knew to be right. My words, my actions, my thoughts—my life—were focused on me. Partying, promiscuity, and pretending were all parts of day-to-day living.

But then God, in His power and providence, turned my life around. He stepped into the mess of my life and showered me with His kindness. I repented of my sins, wholeheartedly started following Him, and for the first time in my life, had a deeply intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He loved me!

Yet I struggled to comprehend and fully receive it. God was so unrelentingly kind to me, but I didn’t deserve it. It was difficult for me to look at the life I had been living and feel like I could receive His kindness. It felt like I was taking something that didn’t rightfully belong to me and that I didn’t deserve. I was embarrassed by my past choices. How could God continue to be so kind to me when I had been so apathetic toward Him for so many years?

As I’ve continued to follow Him, though, God has time and time again showed me that this life I live is truly about the love relationship I have with Him—the love relationship that starts from Him. Who He says I am is who I am. I am not defined by my past; I am defined by His love for me. What a kind Father He is!

Even to this day, if I look at my daily mistakes, mess-ups, or missteps, it’s easy to feel puzzled by God’s kindness. Why would He still be so kind to me? Well, the truth is that His kindness is zero percent based on my failures and 100 percent based on His love for me. And that is true for you as well. His kindness toward you flows completely from His character, not from your flaws, faults, or failures. He is kind because of Who He is. His kindness is greater than, bigger than, and beyond any of our understanding. It’s mysterious. But it’s real! We may not “get” it, but we get it. In other words, we may not fully understand it, but we are daily recipients of it. And it flows from Him in every season and every second, through the highs and the lows, the successes and the failures. Moment by moment, you can count on God’s kindness.

In Psalm 63:3, David exclaims to God that His lovingkindness is better than life itself. How could anything be better than the precious gift of life? After all, if we don’t have life, what do we have? But let me ask you this—: what is life without the kindness of God? David knew that this life has true joy, meaning, and fulfillment only in God’s kindness toward us.

So then the next question is this: since we’ve received such great kindnesses from God, how should we treat the people around us? There will definitely be times when others do things that annoy us, hurt us, or offend us. Their words and actions may even be malicious. So how should we respond? In those instances, the typical (and understandable) response is to either avoid, ignore in a passive-aggressive way, snap back, or retaliate. Those are all natural responses. But as followers of Jesus, we have His Spirit dwelling in us, and we’re called to respond supernaturally—by showing kindness.

You might be thinking, Wait, does this really apply to everyone? My family, my friends, and those I work with? What about those people I just casually meet throughout the day? Am I supposed to show kindness to every single person with whom I come in contact? The answer is actually yes. I’ve discovered that when you show God’s kindness throughout your daily life, it’s like shining a light in the darkness. That warm glow of kindness stands in such stark contrast to what people experience in other parts of their lives. It’s like a cup of cold water to the thirsty. Kindness is truly a gift. And it shines the light and love of God, even if people don’t realize that it’s God they are experiencing.

God’s kindness flows directly from Who He is. It’s not something He just shows on the outside, yet in reality, feels different on the inside—kindness is fully connected with Who He is. And His kindness can flow from His heart directly to you and then through you to others. It can be fully connected with how you feel on the inside and who you are as a person. The God kind of kindness always loves from the inside out. It is gracious to all and flows freely no matter how the other person acts. It is constant.

God’s kindness is a gift you can give so many times throughout the day, every day. Through your words and actions, your small, medium, and large acts of kindness can show God’s love to so many. His type of kindness is better than life. And you get to give it to everyone!

Choose today and every day to give kindness—the God kind.

Prayer

Father, Your kindness to me is better than life and anything else in this life. I ask You to live Your life through me so I can show Your kindness to everyone around me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

For Further Reflection

1. Reflect on the times when God has shown His amazing kindness toward you. How did His kindness change your heart?
2. Think about those who have offended you. Ask God to soften your heart toward them and show you ways to demonstrate kindness to them.