My children were toddlers, about 3 and 5 years old, when I had them memorize five important words – ‘Be kind to one another’.
“Be kind and tender-hearted to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” – Ephesians 4:32
I’d be lying if I told you my goal was Scripture memory. Let me be clear, my goal was behavior management, and it didn’t work.
Yet, somehow those words from that verse worked their way slowly through my being. They stuck – but, it was with me!
I should explain, I am a person to whom words ‘stick’. Words cling to me – they won’t let go. I’ve learned to take these words seriously – to let them marinate in my mind. I take a closer look, as they often have something to teach me.
All this to say, the word ‘tender-hearted’ has been visiting my thoughts the past several months.
The word makes me want to sigh, a contented ‘aaaahhhhh’. It fits with the other two words in the verse – kindness and forgiveness – traits I’m deeply drawn to – traits I’d like to be known for.
As I’ve pondered the word, I’ve realized that heart-tenderizing can be a painful process.
A picture comes to mind with the word ‘tenderize’, it is of my mom with her wooden meat mallet in hand, pounding chicken breasts with a vengeance – preparing these fillets for a favorite dish of mine – chicken cordon bleu. The tenderest fillets of chicken filled with a thin slice of ham and soft melted cheese bubbling inside.
I think the softening of my own heart has come through some beating, as well. Mountain top experiences didn’t do it for me, it’s been the valleys – places like hardships, difficult relationships, and most especially for me, a chronic illness which has done a work in the softening of me – heart and soul.
No one ever chooses hardship, but it happens.
Trust me, when hardships happen to me, I don’t want them to go to waste. I want God to use them – to grow in me something good. I believe He can do it. I believe that is part of the beauty of His grace that it grows well in the darkest, messiest places of our lives.
God forms us right there – right in the middle of our dark valleys. God shows us His kindness there. God acts. God works to continue His good and perfect plans for our lives, unhindered by the troubles or the armies attacking us – be they spiritual or viral.
I’m guessing, that this season of quarantine and loss has been effecting us, shaping us in some ways we hadn’t expected. It may have beaten us down a little, it may have left some of us hurt, with a bruised, aching heart. Some of us may be angry at our losses, or at how the whole quarantine is being handled, some of us are just plain lonely and isolated. Everyone’s experience is different, no one right response.
The question I’m asking myself – ‘How am I to respond to those in my midst – no matter where they’re at?’
And these small words come to mind:
- Be Kind
- Be Tender-hearted
- Be Forgiving
Final thought….What do you sense happening in your own heart during this season of quarantine? How are you responding to those around you?
**Lord, You know what’s on our hearts today. We invite You to continue Your good work in our hearts and lives and move us to be kind and tender-hearted to ourselves and to those in our midst.
Summer Slow Down….Summer is just around the bend and it seems right to follow a lighter summer schedule, as we all manage and adjust to the changing rhythms with this long season of quarantine.
You can expect a post to slip into your inbox once a month. It’ll be short and sweet (my personal favorites), with just a thought or a brief note of encouragement. My hope is always to challenge each of us to make this day count by following God’s ways – this day.
God bless you wherever this finds you today.