The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold.

— Acts 28:2

Have you ever been the recipient of unusual kindness?

The apostle Paul and 275 others lay on the shore of Malta after surviving a terrible storm and shipwreck (see Acts 27). I imagine that Paul lay coughing up salt water as the islanders surrounded him.

I’m sure both sides were fearful of the other’s presence. And yet the Holy Spirit was already at work ahead of them, bringing the travelers and the Maltese people together. The islanders showed Paul and the others “unusual kindness” by building a fire to provide warmth. Later they would provide the shipwrecked crew and soldiers and prisoners with the supplies they needed to continue on their journey.

Think about someone who showed you unusual kindness.

I’m not just talking about someone whose doctrine is correct or whose beliefs line up with yours. I’m asking you to reflect on times when you were the recipient of an unusual kindness. Could those have been situations when God’s Spirit was at work, bringing together people in a way that only God’s Spirit could?

This is worth considering. When you were a stranger or an outsider, who treated you with unusual kindness (grace)?

Lord may we be open to your Spirit’s work in and among people in situations that we might never expect or imagine. May we be gracious recipients and gracious givers of “unusual kindness.” Amen.