“The Lord is good to all; He has compassion on all he has made.”

Psalm 145:9

A dear friend of mine was involved in a car accident recently where she sustained some head injuries. It was a very frightening experience to say the least since the vehicle literally flipped over. God blessed her to walk away from the scene without any permanent damage to herself. Yet, the vehicle was a total loss!

Whenever, we go through any kind of traumatic experience, we are a little gun-shy about repeating the activity that led up to the incident.

My friend is back to driving now after a few weeks of recovery from her injuries. However, she expresses that she is very cautious and she drives in the right lane, the lane designated for those who tend to drive a little slower than the rest. She states that now she has more compassion for those who drive in the right lane. At one time she would zoom right pass them wondering why they were driving so slowly.

As humans, we tend to think that just because we have the ability or capacity to do something, others should be able to do the same thing. As a result, we misjudge or accuse others wrongfully.

God is a compassionate God and He wants this attribute to be cultivated in all of His children. According to 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, we learn compassion by being shown compassion. “Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the same comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.”

God comforts us during our trials and tribulations so that we will know how to comfort others when they need our sympathy and encouragement. Therefore, God allows us to experience adverse circumstances, so that He can comfort us.

The story of the prodigal son in Luke 15, is certainly a story of compassion. Even though the younger son disrespected his father and squandered his inheritance, the father didn’t condemn him. Rather, he gladly welcomed him back into the home, gave him gifts and threw him a party. The father being older and wiser, no doubt had been, himself, the recipient of compassion.

Also, Joseph, my favorite biblical character, was a man of compassion. Despite the fact that his brothers treated him with cruelty and plotted to kill him, Joseph didn’t retaliate when he had the opportunity. I am sure he thought of the times he had been granted compassion while serving in Potiphar’s house and in jail. Moreover, he realized that his brothers meant it for evil, but God meant it for good.

These two stories remind me of the compassion that Jesus demonstrated while He was on the cross. While the people that He loved so dearly were heralding insults and beating Him unmercifully, He cried out, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34).

Question to ponder: Do you need someone to show you compassion? If so, learn to be compassionate.

Prayer…
Lord, I know I will need compassion. Please help me to become more compassionate.

 

Posted by on Tuesday, June 20th, 2017 @ 10:00AM
Categories: Inspirational