Our acts of kindness to others are truly genuine only when the act itself is the point—not the attention it gets us. Our acts of kindness have achieved their highest aim as soon as they are completed. If I’m honest, though, I often find myself hoping for a nod, a mention after doing some kind deed. I’m one of those folks still learning that goodness is good for goodness sake. Nothing more. God himself lives out this good-for-goodness-sake paradigm—not as a means to some greater end, but simply because it is who he is. His kindness is not an act to manipulate for some other purpose but simply the outcome of his nature. While beginning to script these brief reflections, joy flutters in my heart as I think of how doing good for goodness sake relieves fear and anxiety—and sets my heart free in a very special way. I find that the more I do good for goodness sake and not to get attention, the richer my joy.
