Kindness

This Wednesday I will be reflecting on the fruit of kindness. The scriptures that I will be using in the reflection come from Romans 2:1-10 and Ephesians 4:25-5:2. What struck about the idea about kindness is that being kind and supportive of each other comes from God's kindness that God shows to us. Reading these scriptures starting with Romans begins to remind us that we are in the need of God's kindness which leads us to redemption. This is what John Wesley would call previenent grace.
Maybe due to the amount of unkindness that has been displayed in the last few months in our nation regarding the political campaigns and even continuing today, I have been concerned about what can we do to change the toxic atmosphere that we live in. Examples abound not just between political parties but also within the political party. An example is the way Sarah Palin is being treated by the supposedly advisers and even the way she is responding. It is human when one loses an important event to project the blame of the loss onto someone else rather than going on. This can also be the problem with winners as well.
I would like to propose that kindness does come first from God in God's willingness to forgive us our sins. We are to respond to that kindness by being kind to one another. Ephesians 4:29-32 speaks to that. "Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, to that your words may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption. Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you."
Our nation needs words for building up not tearing down and not laying blame. Wouldn't it be wonderful to work to the point of using our lives, our words, our acts that would give grace to those around us and to share the Kindness that God has shown us.