We are looking at Galatians 5:19-23 and for the next few weeks, we will focus on the last part of verse 22 and 23, one word at a time. 

Galatians 5:22-23; But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

We started with Love; God’s love for us, not our love for Him. He initiated it by removing the obstacles that we put in the way of our relationship with Him. That results in joy and peace, conditions of our heart, something we know inside that shows through our actions and words. That should help us to be patient and kind, we can extend patience and kindness without necessarily guiding people to what is right or wrong. 

In some ways being patient and kind implies acceptance of someone’s behavior. That is not it at all. To extend patience and kindness is to tolerate behavior for the opportunity to help direct things in a direction that is more beneficial, goodness.

Let’s see if I can cut to the chase; have we ever decided to do something without permission with the intent of asking for forgiveness later? We see it all the time on the track, decisions made for the benefit of one driver that cost others a chance at victory. When, truth be told, if they exercised a little patience and grace the outcome might have been different. Patience and grace show up as respect in a race. When we respect the other competitors and teams we don’t need to ask for forgiveness, we didn’t make the questionable move and hope it worked out. We waited and worked harder for a better opportunity. There is always a choice.

Good, what is good? Again, as we can be impatient and unkind, we can know what is good but choose to do the opposite. When you think of goodness we have to think of right and wrong. We start to see that our choices reflect an understanding or lack of, of what is right in God’s eyes. 

We all do it, we make decisions that we know are not right, but it is what we want to do, so we do it. We all make choices that we know are not beneficial for us, but we figure we can handle the consequences, so we do it. There is an advertising campaign that encourages us to “Just Do IT”. My response is, just do what?

If we are being truthful with ourselves, we have gone against what we know to be right or good. That makes us human. That doesn’t however release us from being good. Goodness is something that requires first an understanding of the situation, a knowledge of the right choice and the courage and strength to choose it. Like I said, as we move along and build we start to see the magnitude of the task. Reflecting the character of God is not something we can accomplish without effort, practice and understanding. It is a lot like racing, we need to start somewhere and build off the knowledge we gain and lessons we learn.

In each of us is an understanding of what is good, and what is right. We are taught from an early age what the right behavior is in a certain situation. That is one of the purposes of education is to teach us how we should view and process the things around us. The difficulty with education today is we have forgotten to include God’s view on goodness. Without that we have no hope of truly learning what is good.

The key is nothing is good apart from God. Without His presence and input we are not capable of determining good. I would encourage each of us to start a devotion time that includes reading and studying God’s word. Then we can learn what is truly good. 

Romans 12:2; NLT; Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

We learn what God’s view of things is by understanding, studying and learning His word. Then we will think differently. Then we will see the contrast between what we have called good and what God views as good. 

If you need some suggestions of where to start, begin with the Gospel of John. If you need a bible let me know and we will get one out to you. There are many online resources and podcasts to listen to, but it is good to have some understanding of the truth before you select one. If you are unsure, ask and we will guide you. We are looking forward to helping you discover and understand our Good, Good Father.

Philippians 4:8-9a; NLT; And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me

Until next time, remember God loves you and Jesus is Lord over Auto Racing! God Bless. Remember, that your prayerful support and donations helps us continue this ministry. Thank You.

We are looking at Galatians 5:19-23 and for the next few weeks, we will focus on the last part of verse 22 and 23, one word at a time. 

Galatians 5:22-23; But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

This week we will discuss kindness. When I hear kindness I immediately relate that to grace, we have difficulty extending grace to others. We usually decide in our mind if they deserve it. We have a mental checklist and if we feel they earned it we are kind to them. That is not the way it works folks.

As I have said before God’s Word has a way of building on itself. Just as we cannot reflect the true character of God without the presence of the Holy Spirit, we will find it easier to develop that character if we build on each previous character trait. So, let’s see what our building blocks stack up to. 

We started with Love, God’s love for us, not our love for Him. He initiated it by removing the obstacles that we put in the way of our relationship with Him.

John 3:16-17; NIV; For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

That is the foundation, God, and His love for us. That makes everything else possible. From that he puts his Spirit in our hearts and that presence allows us to see things differently. With the Holy Spirit present we experience joy and peace. His presence allows us to focus on others and not ourselves, for the first time we start to live with an outward focus, not an inward, selfish one. 

In that moment we start to differentiate ourselves from the World around us, the me first, get mine, look out for number one mindset we see all around us. I wonder if we realize that the United States would not have existed or even had a chance to succeed if the current thought process we see in our daily life existed 250 years ago? Unless we look outside ourselves the community in which we live is doomed to failure and anarchy, Mad Max here we come!

We see it on the track, a young driver is going to drive through everyone to get to the front. They think the answer is pushing everyone out of the way. Then it happens, someone pushes back and chaos ensues, not unlike some SK Lite features I have seen. Until we learn to respect and see things through the eyes of others we will not develop the character of God.

It is said that the first step in becoming a championship contender is to finish the race. To do that we have to be aware of our surroundings, develop a give and take attitude and have some patience. Now we start to see things come together but how does kindness fit at the race track? Think of all the grace that has been extended to you. Think of the provision that others have provided. Think of all the effort and sacrifice given for your benefit? That doesn’t happen without others choosing to extend grace and kindness.

So, what does kindness look like? You will find a common thread that runs through each of these character traits, we must want to. We must decide to be kind. We must decide to be gracious. It is a decision. Like every decision we make we need training and practice. Think about the good things in life, they don’t come without some effort. We can learn to be gracious and kind. 

Some of us are kind by nature, that is a plus for them. For most of us it is a learned behavior. It starts when we are young. We are taught to play nice, don’t bite, hit, kick or scream. From there we learn how to share. Then we progress to giving the biggest piece of candy to someone and keep the smaller piece for ourselves. In that process we develop a thought process that considers others.

I can say somewhere along the line we fell off the rails, because I see less and less of that each day. When the worldly pressures close in we see self-preservation escalate. I am sure we all know someone with enough toilet paper to last them ten years! It happens, it is a defense mechanism that exists. We don’t think that anyone will provide for us so we have to do it ourselves. If we follow that to its inevitable conclusion we will all be isolated narcissists. If you’re wondering if you are headed that way, let me ask you, have you thought about building a safe room with provisions? 

Don’t misunderstand, we need, to a certain extent, provide for our needs. It is when it gets obsessive that we lose focus. We need to step back from that and start looking outside our own little world and see the greater need around us. We need to extend a gracious, kind hand without the worry of what’s in it for me.

Kindness is more a state of mind than an action. One of the byproducts of receiving the gift of salvation God offers is that it comes with a promise that He will supply what we need. When we learn to rest and be at peace with that provision we start to see where we can extend kindness and grace by giving of ourselves to others. That’s when we depend on God.

The foundation of His love and presence expresses itself in us as peace and patience. From there we are able to be kind and gracious. We don’t have to protect and provide for ourselves, God has promised to do that.

Matthew 6:31-33; NLT; “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

Until next time, remember God loves you and Jesus is Lord over Auto Racing! God Bless. Remember, that your prayerful support and donations helps us continue this ministry. Thank You.

One question that came to mind has to do with whether or not kindness has a part in racing. Sometimes we think of kindness as a show of weakness when in fact it take a great deal of restraint and strength to show kindness. Let’s take a look at the complexity of the word; respect, value, consideration, understanding, tolerance and unselfish. That is not an exhaustive list but it does cover many of the things I see lacking not only in racing but in the world around us.

I am aware of a debate about how the racing we see today compares with the racing of yesterday. Many “Old Timers” are not a fan of the way races are decided today. I would fall into that group. I am not sure of the answer but I am sure of the cause, lack of respect.

We have developed an attitude that all things are permissible if the outcome is what I want. We see that attitude throughout society, in every part of our lives. From the reluctance to obey traffic signs; right turn on red AFTER stop, to having 25 items in the 12 item or less line, to the recent run on TP. We have lost our sense of compassion, consideration and thoughtfulness. Living that way has brought us to this place of angst and division in our daily lives. We are no longer in this together, it is me against the world.

I remember a time when you looked out for others, you understood the challenges we all face and considered that when you made choices. Today when we see someone our thought process prompts us to get there first, get your share, don’t let them beat you to it. Whatever means is necessary to get what you want, forget about anyone else.

How does this play out in the racing we see on the track? The bump and run. A lack of respect between competitors that seems more prevalent today. Now we can debate when and how it started. We can debate who is at fault, the bumper or the bumpee, but the fact remains the lack of respect and understanding we have for one another shows up in the racing we see. Blocking, using two grooves, changing the point where you pick up the throttle or lift going into the corner are all techniques to keep the faster car behind you, but we all know that when the laps wind down you will be moved.

I really admire the patience of the driver who tries everything to make a pass only to be thwarted by the slower car. My hope would be that when all those maneuvers are exhausted the slower car picks a lane, holds their line and lets the faster car pass. Unfortunately, when you arrive on the bumper of a car that you have had an encounter with before, you don’t sit and wait for the opportunity, you take matters into your own hands.

All the discussion and all the he said she said on social media will not solve this. The drivers involved know what they do and why they do it. Until they honestly share what they did to one another the truth of the matter will not come to light. I am not saying just move over and let them by. It is okay to make them earn it. What I am saying is if it’s not your day, it’s not your day and no matter how hard you try to obstruct the proceedings it will not be your day. The fate of your day will be placed in the hand on the wheel of the car behind you. I hope they treat you with kindness but I’m pretty sure when the time comes you will have worn out your welcome.

I won’t even get into the unintended consequences of selfish actions. When our focus is on ourselves we struggle to give consideration to our surroundings and how our actions will affect others. But if we get a handle on this kindness thing there will be less collateral damage I am sure.

I have written about the Golden Rule, Treat others as you would want to be treated, but it seems we are forgetful people. There are some who take advantage of the kindness of others. We should be different than that.

Ephesians 4:31-32; Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

We don’t need to be so judgmental and angry. We can choose to show grace and mercy. A friend of mine who has been through some very difficult circumstances had a perspective I want to share.

He said; “Not everything that happens to you in life is necessarily your fault. However, it is your responsibility with how you choose to deal with these things. We always have a choice. Choose Love. Choose kindness.”

Thank you Gene for reminding us that we always have a choice. The choice we make will determine the results. Don’t lose sight of the fact that good produces good and evil produces evil. Good never can produce evil and evil can never produce good. Choose wisely.

Until next time, remember God loves you and Jesus is Lord over Auto Racing! God Bless. Remember, that your prayerful support helps us continue this ministry. Thank You.