Scheming Good (Behind Their Backs)

Do they not go astray who devise evil? Those who devise good meet steadfast love and faithfulness.

Proverbs 14:22

What have you been devising lately? What are you planning? What about adding to your To-Do list something that would fall under the heading: Stuff To Do For Other People? Geoff said it well recently…if we want to get to the place where our right hand doesn’t know what our left hand is doing when it comes to the good we do for others (like Jesus says we should), we might need to start by actually planning to do good. If we want kindness and generosity to be second-nature, we have to work at making them a habit. Then, when someone later says, “Thank you for such-and-such thing you did,” we’ll scratch our heads and have to think for a second about what they are talking about. Because doing good for others will just be woven into our everyday life. 

Is it insincere to plan to do good, to work it into our lives in an intentional fashion? Isn’t it better to let things just happen organically? Is it insincere for a couple to carve out time in their week to spend together? No, by doing so they show that they value one another, so much so that they don’t want to let the urgent override the important. Is it insincere for parents to plan special time with their kids? No, it communicates, “You’re worthy of my time.”  Things that are worth doing are worth planning.

 I don’t have to think long about the good I could be doing for others. Often, there are things I have been meaning to do for other people that I just haven’t prioritized. I can think of numerous people to pray for, people to send notes of encouragement to, people who I could pursue in friendship, people Geoff and I could have over for dinner. But if I don’t plan for these things, they will just remain good ideas, even missed opportunities. I imagine it doesn’t take you long to think of who to put on your list or your calendar.

Why not put one person down on your list, and then make it a goal to do something for them by the end of the week? It doesn’t have to be big, just a simple act of service, a (positive) conversation you’ve been meaning to have, a thoughtful gift, an invitation, a gesture of friendship towards someone who is lonely.  Then, continue to plot good for others in this way until doing so becomes as natural as breathing. It will and ought to still take planning at times, but the more you devise good for others, the less of a big deal it will seem, and the less you’ll secretly want others to notice when you do. And an added bonus? You’ll most likely come across love and faithfulness more often when you live like this (hint: Proverbs says this is the case). It can be quite fun to think of good things to do for others behind their backs (and maybe a good replacement for gossip?). I have some good things to scheme, some that I’ve been putting off for too long, so I’ll be making a list of my own. What about you? Are you in?