David had had a tough ride. He was living an amazing life now he was king, but it hadn’t always been that way. He was holding onto a promise that one day he would be king, but in the meantime he had spent years being chased down by the current king Saul, hungry for blood, raging in jealousy. Finally for David, the tables turned, and Saul’s vengeful actions were brought to an end. Saul and his sons were killed in battle – not by David – and all of a sudden, David became star of the show.
In the ancient world in which he lived, it was normal for one king to fight against another, and the winner would be pretty brutal to whoever was left of the old king’s friends. Acts of cruelty often followed a defeat and escalated, with every member of a defeated king’s family being slaughtered.
But David chooses another way. Having been fiercely loyal to God’s anointing on the king, David didn’t gloat over the death of Saul and his sons – far from it. His dearest friend Jonathan was one of the king’s sons, and he grieved for him. He then asked this question: “Isn’t there anyone left of Saul’s family, who I can show kindness to for Jonathan’s sake?”
Deep in David’s heart was a kindness that led him to give a place at his table – providing all the needs for life – for a guy called Mephibosheth who was disabled. In a society with no welfare and no inclusion of disabled people, David extended generosity to Mephibosheth and brought him into his own family.
At the end of his life David was described in the Bible as being a man “after God’s own heart”. He was fierce, a warrior, and yet there are moments like this where we see his kindness – after God’s own heart.
Kindness is a surprise.
Kindness is a twist in the plot which no one is expecting.
Kindness is the currency of family, of heaven. It’s paid forward, it’s invested in others, and it earns interest when it’s treasured up in our hearts.
Think about it – when people say something ‘restored their faith in humanity’, what are they referring to? Kindness.
Kindness can restore faith.
In this unusual time there may be ways we’re limited in showing kindness, but we are also seeing a move of kindness in communities. Recently on the news a woman shared how a complete stranger had bought her a washing machine, as since lockdown she couldn’t go to the laundrette and hand washing everything was time consuming and difficult with looking after children. Kindness looks like something.
What would kindness that restores faith look like today? How is God moving on the earth to restore faith right now? Let’s pray for kindness to rise up!
Adventures with God 