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“As God’s chosen people, holy and dearly
loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and
patience.” Colossians 3:12 (NIV)
Paul gets down to the basics of life in
this passage. Let us look at each of these qualities and see what we can learn
about them.
Compassion- A believer does a deed for someone because it is
the right thing to do. When we help a friend or someone in need expecting nothing
in return, we exhibit compassion.
Kindness- One of the fruits of the Spirit; I believe the word
tenderness is a synonym. We show kindness when we do a favor for someone else. We
run an errand for a neighbor. We listen to a friend who has a problem.
Humility- The Bible tells
us to think of others as being better than we are. This is not a quality we see
in our 21st Century society overall. We remember God’s grace that
saved us and made into a new creation. A form of this word-humble- is my word
for 2016. In a few months, I will share with you how this word has influenced
me.
Gentleness- Another fruit of the Spirit; when we do wrong, God
is gentle with us. He does not give us what we deserve because of His grace for
each of us. He expects us to be gentle with those around us as well.
Patience- Here we have yet another fruit of the Spirit. The
King James Version uses the term “long-suffering,” As people’s attention span decrease,
I see impatience in place of this very vital value in our lives.
Sometimes we women can think a long time about what to wear... next time that happens.. I'll remind myself to be clothed with these qualities!
ReplyDeleteMarja: Thank you for your thoughtful comment. We should all be certain that we are clothed in a way that honors God. Blessings to you and yours.
DeleteI need to more actively practice this, with certain people in particular. You know how it is, some people are easier to love than others. But that is no excuse not to walk as I should. Thank you for this reminder!
ReplyDeleteKaren: You are not alone in feeling the need to practice this. I also need to practice it more completely.
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