Benefit of the Doubt

I used to hear this conversation (argument) between my sons and their father.  Whenever Tony gave street children food or treated them to snacks or meals, the debate ensued.  

“Papa, you are encouraging begging!” 

“I am not giving them money, I am simply feeding these poor, hungry children.” 

“But they’ll grow up thinking begging is the way to live. They will lose their drive to work hard for the things they need,” sons would stress. “Haven’t you read the government’s warning that these kids are controlled by syndicates?” 

“I give them the benefit of the doubt,” Tony would reply gently. To me he confided, "I simply love doing it." 

Giving someone the benefit of the doubt is to believe something good about him/her—rather than something bad, when you have the possibility of believing either. 

“You are being too kind!” sons would insist.   

Since Tony left us for home, these arguments are no more. And so I ask, is there such a thing as being too kind? 

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (NLT) says, “Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.” 

How then can we know if our heart and acts of kindness are what God means in the above verses? 

We can go to Him in prayer and ask for His grace of discernment, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” (Psalm 139:23-24) 

God encourages us to be kind to one another, even enemies. 

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:31-32)