Why do we think it is good to be nice? Honestly, I’ve always been irritated with the excessive compliments about someone being nice. My basic thought has been that being nice is not genuine. I don’t know about you, I would rather have people around me that are genuine.

The Latin word from which nice derives is nescius, which means ignorant. Throughout history, this word’s use has changed dramatically. Look it up. Regardless of the current use, it is my belief that a word’s origin is powerful.

Being nice is fool’s gold.

If my zipper is down, I don’t want you to be nice. I want you to be honest. I want you to care. I want you to be willing to be uncomfortable and tell me. If I am being a jerk and you don’t want to be around me, I don’t want you to be nice, I want you to love me enough to look at me and tell me the truth.

Though I haven’t searched diligently, I don’t recall anywhere in the Scriptures that calls us to be nice. And if it does, I wonder about the interpretation. I know that we are called to love. I know that we are called to be good to others. I know that First Corinthians chapter 13 says that love is kind. But I don’t really associate those things with being nice. Kindness does not imply avoidance of truth.

My instincts about being nice seem to be legitimate. I had never looked into it before, but it irritated me. Now that I understand the origins of the word better, I think my instincts are valid.

I like to think about it this way. I do not intend to be nice. I intend to love. Loving someone may seem nice at times. But if my goal is to be nice, I may not be loving.

If you don’t like this post, don’t be nice, be loving and tell me the truth.