The Power of Loving Kindness
This past Sunday, we announced a Year of Kindness at Westminster. One of the key concepts is that kindness is different from simply being nice. While being nice requires little more than a friendly disposition, being kind requires sacrifice. Offering our kindness requires us to respond to another’s needs. We must recognize their personhood, focus on their situation, and provide empathy and emotional or physical response. Kindness requires risk because our care may not be reciprocated. Yet, our faith calls us to respond with loving kindness.
One of the most remarkable words in the Hebrew Bible is the word hesed, which means “Loving-Kindness.” Loving-kindness describes God’s very being and our lifelong call. In her book, A Year of Living Kindly, Donna Cameron reports that some people view kindness as a weakness. Yet Cameron affirms, “Kindness is a strength, a superpower that has the capacity to transform lives and change the world.” While Cameron’s words may seem lofty or even naïve, the power comes from the reality that all people can produce kindness. You do not need to be rich, intellectual, or even possess an enormous pool of faith to provide compassion.
According to Cameron, “It [kindness] only requires that we pay attention, and when we pay attention, and when we face a choice of how we will respond, we choose kindness.” Our moments of kindness don’t only affect the recipients or even just ourselves. Kindness radiates out from the moment and blesses those around us. For example, I am a mentor for the Teammates organization at a local elementary school. I am regularly awed by how elementary school children offer kindness without fanfare or expectation. Often, they include others and treat others with warmth, and inclusion is often harder to achieve by adults. Perhaps this is due to the belief they have nothing to lose from being kind.
Today, pray for the gift of kindness. First, pray for the wisdom to know when you are called to moments of kindness. Then, pray for the courage to act when kindness is expected. Finally, pray for the one who receives your kindness and those who will be influenced by the Spirit’s touch from your simple act of care. Kindness multiplies exponentially. The more you offer, the more kindness ripples through the world around you. Soon, kindness is the rule rather than the exception.