Hi there, and welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread.

Our reading titled Extending Christ's Kindness was written by Lisa M. Samra.

Kindness or revenge.

Isaiah had just been hit in the head by a wild pitch during a Little League

Regional Championship baseball game. He dropped to the ground holding his head. Thankfully,

his helmet protected him from serious injury. As play resumed, Isaiah noticed the pitcher was

visibly shaken by his unintentional error.

In that moment, Isaiah did something so extraordinary that the video of his response went viral.

He walked over to the pitcher, gave him a comforting hug, and made sure the pitcher knew he was all right.

In a situation that could have resulted in a

brawl, Isaiah chose kindness. In the Old Testament, we see Esau make a similar, though far more

difficult choice, to abandon any long-harbored plans for revenge against his deceiving twin brother Jacob.

As Jacob returned home after 20 years in exile, Esau chose kindness and forgiveness instead of vengeance for the ways Jacob had wronged him.

When Esau saw Jacob, he ran to meet him and embraced him. Esau accepted Jacob's apology and let him know he was all right.

When someone demonstrates remorse for wrongs committed against us, we have a choice, kindness, or revenge.

Choosing to embrace them in kindness follows Jesus' example and is a pathway toward reconciliation. Today's

our daily bread devotional scripture reading is from Genesis chapter 33 verses 1 through 11.

Jacob looked up and there was Esau, coming with his 400 men. So he divided the

children among Leah, Rachel, and the two female servants. He put the female servants and their

children in front. Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph in the rear. He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the

ground seven times as he approached his brother. But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him. He threw

his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept. Then Esau looked up and saw the women and

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