I have been hearing myself say, “God was very kind to me when He yada, yada, yada,” or “God was so kind to give me X, Y, Z. . .” Those are true statements, but even more accurate is the fact that God is kind to me all the time–its just that sometimes He gives me eyes to see His hand which is always at work for my good and His glory.
The TeNaCh, or the Old Testament, describes God’s kindness with the word chesed, a word that is so stuffed with meaning the translators compound words to describe it: lovingkindness and steadfast love. As in, ” How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.” Psalm 36.7.
In the New Covenant, God describes the reasons for His kindness to us: His kindness pursues our hearts to follow Him wholeheartedly.
- Romans 2:3: “…do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?
- Ephesians 2.4-7 “but[c] God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
- Titus 3.4 “…when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life
Here are a few of the ways that I have seen God’s kindness to me just in the last days…
- The rainbow dance of a prism swinging in the sunshine.
- The gentle encouragement of a friend.
- Shades of flavor in coffee (and, let’s be frank, the caffeine is a grace, too!).
- Rain and sunshine and the anticipation of snow.
- Faithful women pursuing God together.
- Hummingbirds who work the top of the Oak tree outside my second story window.
- The patient, steady gaze of an affectionate dog.
- Old friends moving back to town.
- The stories and songs of King David.
- The prayers of a righteous Jesus-follower.
- The lives of great men and women of old who, though dead, yet speak.
How have you noted the kindness of your God at work in your life? How does it pull your soul?
Lisa LaGeorge 
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This blog post is an example of God’s kindness towards me. I have been struggling in my faith over the past few months due to what feels like an onslaught of very difficult life circumstances. Struggling with feeling abounded by God, and alone in this valley. But over the past few days I have felt Him stirring my heart and drawing me back to Himself. Today, I decided to start reading through all the Christian blogs I follow that I haven’t looked at for months. Tim Challies’ blog brought me here to read the word chesed. A word I discovered years ago and so captured and overwhelmed my heart with its richness and meaning. And now here it is again; God reminding me of His chesed towards me. So, God used your blog to remind me of His kindness, even in the midst of my circumstances. Thank you for posting this. Blessings, Courtney
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Reblogged this on Averagechristiannet and commented:
One of the richest words in all the Bible: loving kindness. And only God truly has it….
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