Kindness will cost you everything 👏

Kindness cost nothing, but everything.

Image source

Kindness cost everything. It will cost you understanding, forgiveness, and more often than not self-discipline.

Patience cost everything.

Patience to listen not to reply, but to understand.

The message regardless of the biases felt toward the speaker. The ability to listen for understanding can at times be filtered with an emotional response. As I mentioned, how one feels toward or perceives the speaker effects our ability to understand their message.

Understanding cost everything.

Understanding the message not to reply to the attacks, but to forgive them.

Those heated debates that become personal. Those none personal debates that become heated for self-righteous sake. It only causes an emotional reaction if it's true, right? I would say wrong. Regardless of how true, a play on words, a play on situation causes hard when one takes offense. The offense isn't so bad until the reaction of it. Not everyone has thick skin. Maybe they shouldn't if they were actually listening to understand without their filtered ears. One might be able to forgive.

Forgiveness cost everything.

Forgiving the speaker who hasn't forgiven himself. Forgive the speaker that needs attention for a hurt that scares their every word.

Speaking from a place of hurt can cause a reaction. Listening from a place of hurt or offense can cause a reaction too. Knowing this to be true, how can one practice listening with forgiveness as their intention. Forgiveness often times isn't for the other, but for ourselves. Forgive the attacks that speak violence, but begs for attention, a voice, and a lack of self-discipline.

Discipline to listen to wise counsel.

Takes an amount of self-awareness. Often humbling too. A proud heart speaks loud to cover fears. A broke heart speaks in similar tones. The silence you expect from a broken heart comes from the lack of or refusal to hurt again. The discipline to forgive the past action of others, the betrayal that has scared them for life, and now is the driving force for their every speech. We can't ask of others that in which we don't ask of ourselves. Or that in which we lack in ourselves. How easy is it to respond to our initial anger and frustration.

Some say, kindness cost nothing. I say, kindness cost nothing, but patience, but understanding, and forgiveness. Thank you for leading by example. Inspired by crimsonclad and her fearless leadership.

Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”
‭‭