Love That Covers - The One Year Daily Acts of Kindness Devotional

Love That Covers

Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.

1 Peter 4:8

I was hurt and angry. Some women from my church had said unkind things about me, and I was ready to retaliate. I’d spent all day thinking up what I would say to each one of them.

I was in the right, and their actions were wrong—I was sure of it.

As I laid out in my mind the list of reasons why they were wrong and should be sorry for their words, I was taken aback by a fleeting thought I can attribute only to God, because it was so unlike anything else I was thinking about at the time:

Kendra, you can be so right, you’re wrong.

Well, that’s not what I wanted to hear, I thought.

As I began to ponder the idea, I realized that my heart toward the women who had hurt me wasn’t right. I began to see that what I really wanted was retaliation (and some vindication) for the way I had been treated. Instead of owning the hurt I felt, I wanted to lash out in anger with an “I’m right and you’re wrong” mentality. In reality, that line of thinking would have done little to repair the relationship I had with these women. If anything, it would only make things worse. I decided to take my heartache to the Lord, let him deal with the women and their harsh words, and not say anything I would possibly regret. I was reminded that sometimes “love covers a multitude of sins.”

Sometimes wisdom and kindness lead us to confront others over their unfair words and actions, and sometimes they lead us to let things go. Discerning the best approach depends largely on the attitude of your heart. Before deciding what to do, examine your heart by asking yourself these questions: Do I feel the urge to say something because I genuinely care about this person? Or am I trying to hurt them back by putting them in their place? Our attitudes can make all the difference in approaching and handling challenging relationships with grace.

—Kendra

— Today’s Act of Kindness —

Are you feeling hurt by someone? Choose your actions and your words wisely as you deal with this challenging relationship.