[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 23/January/2022]
In the ‘Connect in Faith’ group this last weekend, the theme was on little acts of kindness and I was introduced to a song I hadn’t heard before, some of the words of which are:
Little deeds of kindness
Little words of love
Make this earth an Eden,
Like the heaven above
In the gospel of Luke, Jesus was speaking about things which had been lost, but then found. One was about a shepherd who lost one of his sheep, then left the remaining 99 to go searching, then found the lost sheep and came home rejoicing; another was about a woman who lost one of her 10 silver coins, but then found it and asked her friends to rejoice with her. He talked about their joy in finding what they had lost and said
“In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Luke 15: v10
I hadn’t looked at it in this way before, but it is almost as if the angels recognise the sinner as one who is lost and are thrilled when the sinner repents, or ‘is found’, if you like.
The next parable that follows this is that of the prodigal son, which will be familiar to many. In this story, the wayward son falls on hard times after squandering his wealth and then comes to his senses and returns home. In this case, it was hardship that brought him back to his senses, but in other instances in life, it is a kind word, or a kind action that is what touches an individual and makes them draw back from the path of destruction.
You may know such people, you may have been in that position, ever grateful for that little act of kindness. You may also have been the one who performed the act of kindness and the chances are that you didn’t realise the impact it had.
Jesus tells us that when He comes back to judge the nations, the sort of acts He will count as worthy will be simple acts that any of us can perform.
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.”
Matthew 25: v35-36
As you go into the week ahead, why not resolve to be kind in any way you know, no matter how insignificant it might seem, for that act of kindness could be what makes the difference to a lost and weary soul, and cause the angels to jump up and cheer again.
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Contributed by David Makanjuola; © the Author
