Today I stumbled upon this expression.

 

“Commit to one random act of kindness”.

 

What does this even mean? When did it happen that a human being would need a nudge in the direction of committing themselves to making a random act of kindness?

 

Galatians 5:22-23New International Version (NIV)

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

23 gentleness, and self-control. Against such things, there is no law.

 

 

Kindness is the fruit of the spirit. It is a result of something that had been planted into a heart before and has grown into fruition of acts of kindness. And love. And joy… and even self-control!

 

We cannot force a cucumber plant into growing tomato fruit. It doesn’t matter even if a cucumber decides to be a tomato… it is still a tomato. The part that would allow it to be something different is in the seed.

 

It is amazing to me how you will reap what you sew. It is always true about plants. It is not always true about people’s hearts.

 

If you are looking to reap kindness, love, joy, goodness, – then this is what needs to be sown. It needs to be sown into a well-prepared soil of your heart. It needs to be watered and fertilized.

 

Committing to a random act of kindness is as strange as expecting a sweet apple to grow on a jalapeno plant.

 

If random acts of kindness are what you want to do, start with your heart. Show yourself some love and acceptance. Show yourself that compassion. Start with being kind to yourself.

 

Matthew 22:39New International Version (NIV)

39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

 

 

If you cannot love yourself, no matter how committed you are to be kind and loving to others, you will burn out. You will feel frustrated, underappreciated, being never enough.

 

When your heart is filled with the good seeds, not weeds, it will overflow with goodness and compassion to others.

 

When you have compassion, the acts of kindness will happen. Regularly. Naturally. More and more often.

 

Your kindness will be there in how you show up for your family, your friends, your colleagues. Even strangers.

 

So instead of committing to a random act of kindness, let try to commit to consistently taking care of our own hearts so that they would keep growing an abundant harvest of love, and joy, and peace.

 

And kindness.