My Kindness Shall Not Depart From Thee

Years ago when my daughter was just learning soccer, we’d shout from the sidelines, “Get the ball! Take the ball! Kick the ball!” and it just wasn’t clicking. Then, after a couple games, she scored her first goal! She ran up to me and said with enlightenment, “Mom. Soccer games are NOT about being nice!” 😂

I get what she meant, but that’s not quite the lesson we wanted to teach! There’s always room for being nice.

I’ve seen both good & bad sportsmanship watching kid sports! But it never fails- when a player gets injured on the field, ALL the other players from both teams “take a knee.” And when the fallen player gets back up, either to continue the game or sit on the sidelines, everyone applauds!

We all get knocked down. We get bumped & bruised. We have mistakes & failures. Don’t we all deserve concern & respect in vulnerable times? Don’t we all deserve support & encouragement when we get back up?

The words of Isaiah in 3 Ne. 22 are some of my absolute favorites. “With great mercies will I gather thee” “With everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee” “My kindness shall not depart from thee...saith the Lord.”

(Look up the song “My Kindness Shall Not Depart From Thee” Rob Gardner HERE featuring the Spire Chorus and London Symphony- one of the most beautiful & touching songs I’ve ever heard!)

God has GREAT mercies and EVERLASTING kindness for us! We can gather others under this same umbrella.

“The works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do” (27:21)

“What manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am.” (27)

“Be part of a collective force that changes the world for good... lift up the hands that hang down... put struggling people on our backs or in our arms and carry them.” -Sharon Eubanks 

“Ask to see others as He does... Then act by loving, serving, and affirming their worth and potential as prompted. As this becomes the pattern of our lives, we will find ourselves becoming ‘true followers of … Jesus Christ.’ Others will be able to trust our hearts with theirs. And in this pattern we will also discover our own true identity and purpose.” -Michelle Craig

Soccer may not necessarily be about “being nice,” but life is.❤️