I took some time during my quiet time to try to understand what is kindness, this was prompted by the Kindness challenge. I did what I do best, took time and did some research.
In accordance with the BibleHub Strong Concordance, Kindness in Greek is chréstotés. Trust me it got me too… I almost pronounce it ‘christo’, but we will get back to that later. Chréstotés, its synonyms are goodness, excellence, uprightness.

When the Kindness and Relationship Challenge was launched, I leapt at it and joined in, because why not? When I told Zano he was like “hmm, I will see”. You see the Kindness and Relationship Challenges are unlike the Slipstream Challenge which I have my own testimony about, but we will also leave that for later. With exercise you can physically see your results, you can have a goal monthly and you push every day to reach the 10km, 2km or 42km goal that you have set. However, with the Kindness and Relationship Challenges, it requires the heart, it’s intentional and it’s purposeful. 

From day one of the challenge, I kept asking myself “What is kindness?” As I take each prompt and implement it, there is just such love and care that is shared. That is when I realised; kindness, a Fruit of the Spirit, is Christ’s love expressed in daily steps of action. I realise that every stretch of kindness I share with Zano and those around me, the more that Christ becomes alive in me and in them. 

I am, naturally, a deeply affectionate and caring person, I love doing things for others and making them feel loved and cared for. With some of the Kindness and Relationship challenge acts, I started with just being more intentional in finding the opportunities to share love every day. 

Such as; After a long day, I will run the shower for Zano, make him tea when he has been working for a while, explore my culinary skills in the kitchen and take walks in the garden. I found that the more kindness I shared, the more kindness I got back; but also the more loving and fulfilling our relationship is to us and to others. We have been able to incorporate all 3 challenges together: take walks to the shops, while touching base on our project strike and sharing our goals and visions and taking time outside the relationship to listen to each other. The more kindness you show to others, the more reason to do more the next day! Each day is cause for celebration!