“Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers” (Ephesians 4:29).
We had seen her getting off the bus. Some kids laughed and pointed at her. Most just stared. Her brother and sister had walked on either side of her as if to protect her. Now she stood at the front of my classroom. Our teacher smiled, put her hands on the girl’s shoulders, told us her name, and welcomed her.
It took courage for the new girl to come to school, and it took more courage for her to stand in front of us. She was a little person—someone with a condition called “dwarfism” which causes them to be much smaller and shorter than others. Except in the movies, we had never seen a little person before. Over the years that girl taught my classmates and me a lot about acceptance and humility.
God made everyone, and He loves what He made. Not everyone looks the same. We do not all think the same. It is easy to make fun of and talk about someone who is different from us. But God wants us to use all our words to help others.
God wants us to be kind. He wants our words to be kind too.
My response:
» Are my words kind?
» Do I point or stare at people who are different from me, or do I make them feel welcome and accepted?