KINDNESS: i will not be made useless....i will gather myself around my faith

I have heard prayers where a person will thank the Lord for his “loving kindness” and mercy toward us. What is that? What is kindness anyway? I was talking to a friend of mine recently, and I told her about a “meeting” (for want of better words) that I had attended, where the featured speaker proceeded to “ball us out” concerning being kind to each other and also to the people we find ourselves in service to. Now in this particular context, I thought “Wow, she really had to go there, isn’t it a given, under these circumstances, that one would be kind, would summon all of the love and caring that we typically reserved for God, and shower it upon his people? 

It was telling, and I realized that King Benjamin spoke a wise prophecy, that when we are in the service of our fellow man, we are only in the service of our God. Service is love, and kindness comes along because of the “sacrifice” that was made to manifest this love/service. But here is a catch-22, sometimes the very brother or sister we are intent on serving/loving simply refuses our kindness. They take the stand of “self sufficiency, or worse, you are not the person they want serving them. (Pride) Or maybe there is one who has a need, but has a personality so off putting, that you find yourself literally wading through thistles and thorns just to get to them. Now here is a principle, kindness begets kindness. It is a pay it forward kind of thing. So I thought about Elder Russell M Nelson’s talk concerning how in “these days” men’s (and women’s’) hearts will fail them. And he should know a thing or two about heart failure because he is a heart surgeon

What happens when our heart fail? But I would like to say, how does a heart fail? It literally stops beating!! To be the true servant of God that we want to be, our heart is for the Lord. We are men and women after God’s own heart. So I guess that if a man’s heart fails, then he probably never knew the Father anyway. Or worse, he has transgressed or turned away from God, and is still pretending to be a part of the “group”.  

So today I had my first “test” of kindness, which by the way involves several principals of humility, submission and obedience. We don’t pick those we serve, they pick us. I was heading in to my office today, late; more often than not these days. What excuse could I use today? A car flipped on the local lanes of the beltway and just as I was meandering by, a fireman walked out in front of my car and proceeded to close the lane, What?! True story. So as I was walking into the building, (I work at a hospital). I saw a lady who is a member of my ward, getting out of her car at the valet parking booth. She is frequent flyer here; she is a transplant patient, waiting for an organ. In the meantime she has to come often for procedures that help to sustain her life. She has grown so frail these days, but still mean as a pistol. I saw her and immediately I thought “Oh no, there is Sister….. Maybe if I walk slowly behind her she will not see me. I felt a “nudge”, reminding me of why I should help her. But you know I felt for a moment like Ananias, a disciple of Jesus, who had been terrorized by Paul/formerly known as Saul. You see, Saul was public enemy #1 to the fledgling church of Jesus Christ. He literally killed Christians, dragged them out of their homes and stoned them. The Lord commanded Ananias to go where Saul was holed up, desperate and blind after being thrown from his horse, after having a “come to Jesus moment”. The Lord told Ananias to go to a street called “Strait”, and he would find Paul there and he was to pray over him, and heal him of his blindness, and then baptizes him!!! No pressure.  

 Now this Sister wasn’t that bad, but depending on what end you were facing, she could be quite formidable and just plain mean. So I had a tiny argument with that little voice that was defending her case to me. We don’t choose who we serve, they choose us. So I repented and walked up to her and said “Hello in a voice that even the deafest person could not hear. She was so glad to see me, and I asked her if I could walk with her, she said “I really need an arm to hold on too”. So we walked like that to where she had to go.  She really appreciated it and so did I.

Her life, my life, your life, we are all intertwined; like some sad country western song:

 I lost my mamma, my dog, my husband. I just got a run in my last pair of panty hose, dang it.

Sometimes we look for superheroes to save us, maybe Wonder Woman or King Arthur to pull that magic sword out of the stony parts of our hearts and souls. But at the end of the day, it is just you and me, each of us just as broken as the other one. This is the way to heaven.

Today is sing along Friday, we are in the throes of a 3fer, Monday is Memorial Day, maybe we can call it : Kindness to others Day, as if we need a day. Sing along......  

Jewel - Hands - Lyrics

If I could tell the world just one thing
it would be that we're all ok
and not to worry because worry is wasteful
and useless in times like these
I will not be made useless
I won't be idled with despair
I will gather myself around my faith
for light does the darkness most fear

My hands are small, I know,
But they're not yours they are my own
But they're not yours they are my own
And I am never broken

Poverty stole your golden shoes
but it didn't steal your laughter
and heartache came to visit me
but I knew it wasn't ever after

We will fight, not out of spite
For someone must stand up for what's right
Cause where there's a man who has no voice
There ours shall go singing

In the end only kindness matters
in the end only kindness matters

I will get down on my knees and I will pray
I will get down on my knees and I will pray
I will get down on my knees and I will pray

We are God's eyes God's hands God's mind
We are God's eyes God's hands God's heart
We are God's eyes God's hands God's eyes God's hands
We are God's hands God's hands We are God's hands