The Olive Branch

Welcome or welcome back to the fruitful series! Today we are talking about gentleness/kindness. Most of us have been taught to be kind since we were kids, and it seems like such a simple subject and an easy thing to do, but are we really being the kindest we can be? It’s easy to be kind when you’re in a good mood and having a good time, but what about when you’ve had a bad day? What about when your sibling is being frustrating or when someone is unkind to you? This is where being kind becomes tough and most of us let our emotions get the better of us. These are the situations where it’s best to just take a step back, and calm down. The ability to hold your tongue is an amazing quality to have. As the saying goes, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” This does not mean you should let people treat you poorly! Being kind doesn’t mean being a pushover, and there’s nothing wrong with telling somebody that you’re not okay with the way they’re treating you, as long as you do it in a mature way. You should also never take advantage of someone else’s kindness or use it as an excuse to treat them poorly. Gentleness doesn’t equal weakness, instead, it’s a strength. One thing I’ll never understand is when people act like it’s so hard to just be kind to others on a regular basis. Growing up people would always applaud me for “my kindness” and call me “the kind one” and that never made much sense to me. It feels like the bare minimum to just be nice, be considerate, and make people feel included. (This is no doubt thanks to the way I was raised, and the emphasis my parents put on kindness.) This isn’t me bragging on myself or saying I always react with kindness, because that’s simply not true. This is just something I’ve been told my whole life, when in reality anyone can be kind, and anyone can be unkind. If you constantly find yourself judging people, making mean remarks, and cracking rude jokes, try to grow from that. It’s bad to be unkind but it’s even worse to have no desire for change. Saying things like, “That’s just the way I am” or “I’m just not the kind one” isn’t gonna get you anywhere and it’s certainly not gonna make you any friends. These sayings are some of the most popular lies from the devil. Kindness isn’t a gene you’re born with, it’s a choice you have to make every day to treat people with respect and love. If you find it hard to be kind, the good news is that you don’t have to make the change on your own. Jesus can change our mindset and his kindnesses inspires us to be kind. This week try your best to react with kindness and reflect on how you could treat people better. Also, appreciate the kindness of others and the impact it makes. Thank you for reading!

Your friend, Olivia

Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”