The Power of Pana

I had been having an okay day. It started with a funeral, followed by seeing my parents who had flown in from Sydney. When I got home I read an email that frustrated me. It unnerved me. It bothered me. I was fuming. I read it aloud to my husband. Then I took a deep breath and thought, I'm not going to respond. I'll just wait and see what happens.

I got into my car and drove to the grocery store, while making a plan of action if the outcome of the email was to require action on my part. I did my usual grocery shop, for once alone. As I approached the check out, the lady in front of me questioned the price that had come up on a tub of Pana Organic raspberry chocolate ice cream. The price on the screen said $11 but she was convinced it was on sale for $5. A price check was requested and as we waited, we started chatting about how good the ice cream is considering it's gluten free, dairy free, sugar free and whatever else. But it's price however did mean that it was a rare 'sometimes' food in both our homes.

The shop assistant returned with the sale price explaining it was the ice cream next to the Pana that was on sale. The Pana was $11. So the lady before me decided not to take it. I saw my opportunity and took it. I called out to the woman who'd turned to return to ice cream to freezer and told her I'd buy it. It was the first item to be scanned and the lady who'd paid for her groceries, turned to me and said, "Enjoy the ice cream!" To which I replied, "No - YOU enjoy it!" And I thrust the tub into her trolley.

What followed was the usual, 'Oh no, I can't let you do that...' back and forth. Finally I said, "Pay it forward". And she left smiling.

I cannot begin to tell you of the overwhelming joy and lightness that I experience inside me, knowing I'd made someone's day. The lady at the check-out said, "That was really nice of you". My response, "I feel great now. So it was entirely selfish!" I was joking, of course. But I realised for a moment, that by doing a random act of kindness, sacrificing $11 for a complete stranger had the ability to erase my negative feelings of earlier.

Those warm fuzzies, as some call them, stayed with me the rest of the day. I could enjoy my time with my family, I could even sleep well. And it didn't even bother me when a second email came through. In fact, I didn't even open it till a day or two later.

Small acts of kindness have a wonderful impact on others, but also on you. Galatians 5:22-23 lists the fruit of the Spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Note that they aren't the fruits (plural) of the Spirit. They're listed as fruit (singular). That tells me that they should all be one package deal if we are living by the Spirit. We can't have all but one. We can't pick and choose. We should strive to have them all.

By showing kindness I experienced joy. That joy resulted in patience to choose love and peacefully not respond to the email. My self-control also meant that when I decided what course to take it was one that came from a place of gentleness and goodness rather than spite or anger.

I'm not sharing this to get a pat on the back or boast about my good works. Oh no! I'm grateful to God for the realisation that His Spirit is working on my heart. A few years ago I was caught up in a similar series of emails and I allowed that exchange to sour my heart. By the help of the Holy Spirit, I am being sanctified to be like Christ. Praise the Lord!

My hope for you is two fold as you read this. First, that you would find a moment to do a random act of kindness for someone. Second, that God would make you aware of how far he's taken you. I think it's easy to just go the distance and think you've always been at this point. But if you look back, you may discover that God had faithfully brought you further along than you realised. And friend, He's not finished with you yet. Praise Him!

N.