Kindness is Essential

So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. Galatians 6:10 ESV

This past week, the weather has been hot, humid and unbearable. My calendar has been too full for my liking, and I have not been in a happy frame of mind.   

As my mind went in the direction of frustration, the words of a Glen Campbell song from the early 70’s came to mind, “Try a Little Kindness.”  That thought was followed by a phrase I had heard expressed several times while I listened to tales of mail order brides during the settling of the west. Those male/female pairings were of two people who had never met before promising to marry out of necessity, not love. The brides often asking the same question, “Will you be kind?”

In the late afternoon on Wednesday, the gentleman who was to give me an estimate on the removal of a dead tree in my backyard arrived. After settling on a price and a date for removal of the tree next week, he prepared to leave. I told him I’d been baking cookies while waiting for him and asked if he would like some. He said he would really like to take a few to his 4-man crew who had been working in the heat all day. So I sent a dozen cookies with him thinking his crew might need a break at that time in the afternoon. It was just a simple gesture of kindness and it made me feel better as well. 

A little over an hour later, I heard the sound of powerful equipment and I went to see where the sound was coming from. The tree removal crew was in my backyard, the tree was already on the ground and they were preparing to take it away. It was almost 6 pm when my doorbell rang. One of the young crew members was at my front door. I asked if he wanted me to write a check. He replied, “Oh, no, I just wanted to know if you were happy with the work that had been done.”

I told him I was very happy and I was grateful as well because I would no longer have to worry about that dead tree falling on a neighbor’s house during a storm. I told him that I also appreciated how they had cleaned up the mess. Then I said, “Tell the rest of the crew I said thanks for coming so quickly and for their hard work. He said, “I will and by the way your cookies were delicious. They all said so.”

Was it the gift of cookies or the little act of kindness I’d shown them that caused the crew to come so quickly? I’ll never know.    

“Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honor.” Proverbs 21:32 ESV

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your words that never fail us. They remind us to do as Jesus taught when He said to be kind and to love one another the way He loves us. Amen

Judy Welch