Big Shoes To Fill

“Now David said, “Is there still anyone who is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”

2 Samuel 9:1

“Greater works than these you will do when I return to the Father” Jesus told His disciples. Following Jesus and carrying on His message to the world are some pretty big shoes to fill the apostles had to the thinking. If there is one evidence that we are living in the last days is what Jesus said would mark the condition of many people s lives just prior to His return it was Jesus own words in Matthew 24:12, “And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.” Note, Jesus said many but not all. Every day you and I have opportunities to show kindness for Jesus sake.

When David became king over all of Israel one of the first things he sought to do was show kindness to the household of Jonathan, his beloved friend who died in battle. We know from ancient history when a monarchy changed hands the last thing you would do is show kindness to the previous king or his descendants. What was standard procedure was to hunt down every living relative of the previous monarchy and have them killed removing any threat of any future uprising or overthrow.

We see so many God qualities in King David as He is a type of Christ in the Old Testament and one quality that we see so often in him is the kindness of God. Kindness, putting others first, preferring them over ourselves are all characteristics we love and appreciate about our Savior and when we seek to emulate them to others they cant help but make a connection to God.

Here is a cute little story that illustrates my point.

“On a cold day in December, some years ago, a little boy, about 10-years-old, was standing before a shoe store on the roadway, barefooted, peering through the window, and shivering with cold.

A lady approached the young boy and said, “My, but you’re in such deep thought staring in that window.”

“I was asking God to give me a pair of shoes,” was the boy’s reply.

The lady took him by the hand, went into the store, and asked the clerk to get half a dozen pairs of socks for the boy. She then asked if he could give her a basin of water and a towel. He quickly brought them to her.

She took the little fellow to the back part of the store and, removing her gloves, knelt down, washed his little feet, and dried them with the towel.

By this time, the clerk had returned with the socks. Placing a pair on the boy’s feet, she purchased him a pair of shoes.

She tied up the remaining pairs of socks and gave them to him. She patted him on the head and said, “No doubt, you will be more comfortable now.”

As she turned to go, the astonished kid caught her by the hand, and looking up into her face, with tears in his eyes, asked her, “Are you God’s wife?”

Cant you just picture that little boys face? Yes, loved one, the kindness of God just might be the one characteristic of God that will stand out the most in these last days when the love of many will grow cold. Keep this little saying in mind as you go about your day, “Be kinder than necessary for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.” Kindness is just one way we stay others focused.

Stoke the fire of your own faith today, beloved of God, show a little kindness and see for yourself what a difference it makes. You might just be mistaken as someone who is related to God!

“No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.”

1 John 4:12

I LOVE YOU!