Three Angels Broadcasting Network Devotional

The Blessings From Acts of Kindness.

By Nikki Anderson September 20

“For His merciful kindness is great toward us, and the truth of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord!” Psalm 117:2

For a few years, God blessed me with the privilege of being part of a small congregation far away from the only home we’d ever known. My two teenage sons and I moved there for a fresh start after a difficult divorce. God’s grace brought us to a new home with new friends who welcomed us into their church and into their lives.

During the first summer in our new home, I was struggling financially but hadn’t told anyone. Not my sons; not anyone at church. (Pride, you know.) One Sabbath morning, the pastor met us in the parking lot at church. The boys went on in, but the pastor asked to talk to me. He said a member of the congregation felt I had a special need and gave him some money to pass along to me. At first, I was embarrassed and didn’t want to take it. (There was that pride thing, again.) Then, I wanted to know who had done such an amazing thing so I could thank them. True to their wishes, the pastor refused to give me a name, but counseled me to take the gift and be grateful. He just smiled and said he knew I would find a way to repay the act of kindness.

Oh, how I thanked God for working in His glorious way, and asked that He send a special blessing to my kind, anonymous friend. As I was praying, I realized it didn’t matter if I found that person or not. What mattered was that I pass along that act of kindness to someone else, as Jesus wants us to do.

The following spring I was blessed with an unusually large tax return that I used to pay off my bills. When I saw that I had money left over, I knew exactly what I was going to do with it! The next Sabbath, I went to church with my gift in hand for the pastor to give to “Grandma” Ruth, one of my dear church friends. She had been widowed a few months before, and was barely making ends meet. The pastor was out of town, but the head elder agreed to carry out my wishes.

The following Sabbath, I went to church and greeted everyone at the door, as usual. Then Ruth hugged me and told me her news. With tears in her eyes, she said she had the most wonderful church family anyone could ever have. She told me about the gift someone had given the elder to give to her. Then she told me she’d been praying for a way to visit her sister in a neighboring state, but just couldn’t find a way to afford it. She said the money was just the right amount for the bus fare, with a little extra to treat herself to some lunch. I smiled and hugged her again, quickly agreeing that this church family truly was wonderful.

I was filled with such joy! I had no idea what Ruth had been praying for, so the blessing I received was just too amazing to describe. Grandma Ruth has passed away, so I can now share this story. I learned so much from that experience, and I will always be grateful that God thought I was worth teaching!