To grow in your faith, you must grow in your love for others. God is love, so if God is in you, love is in you. And if love is in you, love will pour out of you. It is not enough to say you love your neighbor, but you must do it. One of the greatest gifts you can bestow on a person is to be tenderhearted to them.
A hardened heart is hard on others, but a tender heart shows mercy. Let others treat you as they will, but make sure you treat others according to God’s will.
Life is so short and precious, make it your life mission to be a blessing to others in how you treat them. Always consider that the last way you treat somebody is how they will always remember you.
In God’s economy, being kind has greater value than winning an argument or getting your way. We will reap what we sow, and the tenderhearted will be the richest of all in the kingdom of heaven.
Other people have no idea of all you are going through, and the same is true for them. “Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous” (1 Peter 3:8).
Do unto others as the Lord has done unto you. “Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful” (Luke 6:36).
Your witness of Christ to others is in not treating them like they treated you. Jesus said, “…whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them…” (Matthew 7:12).
A smile does not cost you a thing, yet it is priceless to the soul who receives it. “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:10).
If you ever want to know if the Word of God reigns in you, just ask your neighbor. “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (Galatians 5:14).
It is not your ability to change others that determines your effectiveness as a Christian, but your willingness to love them just as they are. “…put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering” (Colossians 3:12).
Accept that people do not understand you. Learn to love others even when they have wrong opinions of you. Live your life, “with all lowliness and gentleness, with [patience], bearing with one another in love” (Ephesians 4:2).
If you want to please God, then you need to be kind to His children. “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32).
The filling of the Holy Spirit is measured by the fruit that flows out. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…” (Galatians 5:22-23).
If you want to change somebody, then love them. “Let your gentleness be known to all men…” (Philippians 4:5).
Don’t focus on how others treat you, but how you treat others. “Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles” (Proverbs 24:17).
Your heart wouldn’t break if it was soft. Don’t let the hard times harden you. God will hear the tenderhearted. “’because your heart was tender…and wept before Me, I also have heard you,’ says the Lord” (2 Kings 22:19).
Nobody will be judged by their knowledge, but how they treated others. “Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another” (Romans 12:10).
You are never calling somebody up when you are putting them down. “Remind them…to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. For we ourselves were also once foolish…” (Titus 3:1-3).
Don’t live for the moment but live in light of eternity. “…you man of God…pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness” (1 Timothy 6:11).
The only thing you can’t do is what you won’t let Him do in you. “…be gentle to all…” (2 Timothy 2:24).
Blessings to you,
Paul
All Scripture is quoted from the New King James Version. Please use the version you prefer to review the verses shown here. The best version is the one you read.
The verses flow perfectly from the words you wrote just before each one. This post gives me a lot to pause and think about when it comes to my 21 year old son and I having arguments over communication issues.
Prayers for you Kate, that the Lord’s peace and love would reign in your heart as you minister to your son in the way you treat him. We need to pray for these young men, the world is so dark for them to find their way in.
Thank you. He talks about how negative the world is to live in. I want to give him a HOPE
James 1:22 (ESV)
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”
Thank you for your God-inspired messages.
Thank you so much for this encouragement! Blessings to you sister!
This gives me much to think on. I am currently in a bad place with a sister who has been very mean to the point where she said her last message was her last correspondence with me. My husband is dying and I cannot deal with this sister right now. It’s too hard. I’m worn out emotionally and physically.
Praying for you to be comforted and strengthened by the Lord, and for your husband that he would have the peace of God upon him. Praying also for forgiveness and mercy to reign in your heart.
Dear Paul thank you so much for this post, I’ve feel that I’ve been taken advantage of by family and disrespect, but through your post I realize that there are many ways of suffering, and through our suffer we need to remain like Jesus, Loving, kind, gentle, kindness and tenderheartness. Once again thank you.
Sometimes it is in the hardest of times we are going through that people will be ministered to as they see us relying upon Christ and having His love deep within us.
Thank you for your posting.. I just read what you had written to introduce yourself. I also was in prison ministry years ago and I agree 100% with the fact that we just have to be willing….’Trust and obey’ says it all.
That is so great you were in the prison ministry, it is such a blessed thing to be a utensil in the hands of God. I don’t know if God will ever call me to go back in someday, but my prayer is to publish some books that I can donate some into different prisons. Blessings to you!