In Ephesians 4.32, we read: "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you."
I realize it is a translation, and I don't have the Greek word in front of me at the moment, but I am taken with the use of the word "tenderhearted." I often use the word to describe my 6 ft 2 inch son. He worked as a nurses aid at a local hospital and was often called in to sit with patients who were not following the doctors instructions. He tended to be called when the patient was also a large person. At one point he was told to show up after the patient had gotten in bed, sit in the shadows, and act stern. He was encouraged not to say anything to the patient. "Why?" "Because as soon as you speak, they would realize your tender heart and no longer be intimidated by your size."
To posses a tender heart is to approach each situation with a kindness, with an understanding, with a predetermined love for the other. It is the trait of one who is forgiving by nature, and never prone to malice.
Our world encourages roughness. But our Lord calls upon us to be tenderhearted.
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