Moved With Compassion

 

“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”—Mother Teresa

This week, our Daily Devos will approach the question, "What Would Jesus Do?" from a different angle, and we'll explore practical ways to apply that question in our everyday lives.  

We'll think about what it means to act as closely as we can to what we believe Jesus would do when it comes to loving others, spending money, using our time, and more.  

Hopefully, these devotions will offer some ways to truly take what we've been learning over the past couple of weeks and put it into practice.  

Today, we'll begin with what it means to show compassion to the people we encounter, and begin showing Jesus to them as we do.  

Compassion isn't something we think about very often.  

Most days, we go about our lives, running errands, doing work, navigating the chaos of family life, managing calendars and schedules, and it's hard to lift our gaze above the steps we are making as we trudge through all of it. 

But sometimes it breaks through all our busyness and boundaries and hits us like a ton of bricks.  

We notice someone in need.  

We become aware of suffering in the world. 

We are confronted by the pain of someone we care about.  

How we respond to feelings of compassion speaks volumes about how much we truly want to be like Jesus.  

One phrase appears repeatedly in the Gospels when Jesus encounters people who are hurting:

“He had compassion for them.”

Jesus sees hungry people and has compassion.

He encounters the sick and has compassion.

He sees grieving people and has compassion.

He looks upon crowds who are “harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd,” and once again, he has compassion.

But Jesus' compassion is never merely a feeling.

It moves him toward people.

And the Greek word that is used to describe what he is feeling is best translated as "gut-wrenching," which means that Jesus felt compassion that hit him right in the gut.  

That distinction matters.

We live in a world where suffering can become overwhelming. Every day we encounter stories of poverty, hunger, homelessness, war, loneliness, injustice, illness, and grief. 

Sometimes there is so much need that our instinct is to protect ourselves by looking away.

Jesus teaches us another way.

In the parable of the Good Samaritan, several people see the wounded man beside the road. But the Samaritan does something different.

He stops.

He moves closer.

He tends the man's wounds.

He spends his own money.

He allows another person's suffering to interrupt his plans.

Perhaps that is one of the simplest answers to the question, “What would Jesus do?”

Jesus would move toward suffering rather than away from it.  It would be a gut reaction that led him to step in.  

That doesn't mean we can solve every problem. We can't help everyone. Compassion without wisdom can leave us exhausted and overwhelmed.

But we can help someone.

We can buy a meal.

Make a phone call.

Visit someone who is lonely.

Volunteer.

Give generously.

Listen without rushing.

Advocate for someone whose voice isn't being heard.

Sometimes compassion begins simply by refusing to look away.

The question isn't whether we can fix everything that is broken.

The question is whether we are willing to allow another person's need to interrupt us long enough to ask:

“What can I do?”

Because compassion isn't simply feeling sorry for someone.

Compassion is love that moves.

Prayer

Compassionate Jesus, open my eyes to the needs around me. Keep me from becoming numb to the suffering of others. Give me wisdom to know where I can help and courage to act when I can. Make my compassion more than a feeling; make it a way of life. Amen.

Reflection Questions

1. Whose suffering have I been tempted to overlook because it feels inconvenient or overwhelming?
2. Where might compassion require something practical from me?
3. Who is one person I can move toward today?