Acts of Kindness Begin at Home

By:  Donna Martin

Had you ever thought that sometimes it might be easier to be a missionary to Africa than to do what God requires of you right in your own home?

For years I prayed and asked God to reveal to me just what he wanted me to do with my life.  I tried to live a good life, but I wondered if there was something more that I needed to be “doing.”  Perhaps there was someone that I needed to help.  Maybe I needed to volunteer for a worthy project.  Always in the back of my mind I struggled with knowing God’s will.  It was frustrating because even when I read the Bible I did not feel that God was showing me what I should do.

As I began to examine the Bible more closely for clues about what God expected me to “do” I found that I had been making it harder than God intended. 

And then I had an “ah-ha” moment.  I remembered a statement that my mother had made when I was a little girl.  She told me, “Acts of kindness begin at home.”    At the time I really didn’t think much about what she said.  I was only about 9.  Actually, her reason for making that statement was that the ladies’ mission organization at our church was trying to demand more of her time.  She had observed that many of the women who were overly involved in all of the “missions” activities were spending an extreme amount of time at church meetings at the expense of their families.  My mother knew that if she became involved in one more “meeting” that she would be too exhausted and busy to be her best as wife and mother.

So many times we get caught up in busyness to the point that we act like the devil at home.  The family was the first institution that God designed.  Our family is important and the way we act around them and the way we treat them can have a great impact on the world. 

Are you being kind at home?

Are you speaking words of encouragement to your spouse and children?

Are you showing respect and love to your spouse?

Are you reading the Bible and praying together as a family?

Do you pray for your spouse and children each day?

Are you being good stewards of what God has given you?

Are you being content with what you have?

Are you sharing with those in need?

As Micah told the Israelites in Micah 6:8, “And what does the Lord require of you?  To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”  God had revealed to Micah that if the people of Israel lived moral and noble lives people would be attracted to God through their lifestyle of love in action. 

How does the world see your "actions" at home?

The Martins currently present “Happy Together” marriages seminars for churches and organizations.  To schedule a seminar call Michael at 940-735-1515. They also publish a weekly “Happy Together” Blog about family and marriage issues.  You can order copies of their new books Dancing With Death and 366 Tidbits We Have Learned in 14,610 Days of Marriage, read, and subscribe to their “Happy Together” Blog by logging onto the Martin’s website at www.happytogethermarriage.com