How good is God. He gives us the opportunity to serve others. When I look at people’s lives, it is those who do not contribute to others in a selfless way, that are the most unhappy.

When I was young, my dad told me: “Take care of your relationships because you never know when you will need them.” This advice taught me to value more the people I had in my life.

When we sow love and kindness in the lives of others, God blesses us. You may say, “I do not see the blessings of God in my life.” Sow. Don’t think just about yourself… let your life be a garden of beautiful works.

The gardener plans how he will arrange his garden. He/she goes about beautifying it through intentional acts. After the gardener has sown, pruned and cleaned the garden, he lets the rain do the rest. Our lives in God are very much like this. We order our hearts, correct our attitudes and deal with others kindly and then, we let God take care of the rest.

I love the story of Ruth in the bible. She took selfless steps that one day bore fruit. This is love without expecting anything in return. It is this kind of love that God blesses. It is this kind of love in which God moves to restore and bless your life. Let’s look at her example:
“She fell on her face, bowed to the ground and said: ‘Why have I found grace before your eyes so that you have noticed me, being a foreigner?’
Boaz responded by saying, ‘Certainly they have told me everything that you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband, and that you left your father, your mother and the land where you were born and you came to a people that you did not know. May the Lord reward your actions! May your reward be complete from the Lord God of Israel; since you have taken shelter under His wings’.” Ruth 2: 10-12

God did indeed reward Ruth with a loving relationship as a result of her kindness. Let’s start looking outward and see where we can sow seeds of kindness that will bear us fruit of joy and love!

– From the desk of Fabio A. Frigole, SSW, RSSW, Pastoral Ministry