Compassion

Today, in church our lesson was about compassion, kindness, and humility from Colossians 3:12

Think for a minute about what compassion is. Or what being compassionate means.

What did you come up with? Feeling sorry for someone, something, or a cause?

The definition from dictionary.com says:

a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken bymisfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.

So in a simpler form, compassion is not only feeling sorry for someone or something but doing something about it too.

In Matthew 15:32 after Jesus has been teaching for 3 days and no one has eaten Jesus says this.

Matthew 15:32 ESV
Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.”

Jesus didn't send the people away hungry, He fed them. Do you drive by that homeless man/woman every day without bothering to take time and money out of your day to get her food? Last time I checked that wasn't loving like Jesus. You see that  person and you feel bad but be compassionate and help them out.

Maybe you feel sorry for the kids in orphanages, cancer patients, animals, or the children in Africa but are you doing anything about it? Are you being compassionate? It's easy to feel sorry for someone but it isn't always easy to do something about it.

Maybe you're not in a place to adopt, but you can pray, donate, and share orphans pictures.

Jesus loves us  unconditionally but we are (well at least I am) judgemental and too full of myself to do that for someone I don't even know. I think it would be different if it was someone I knew. But I don't know their story. All I know is they are wearing yucky clothes and I'm "too good for that" or think "someone else will give to them." That's probably similar to something everyone else thought.

I really need to stop thinking so highly of myself. If I was in that situation I would want someone to give to me. Even if I was in grubby clothes. I'm not any better than them. I'm just not. I'm very self focused. I want a tablet, I want this shirt, I want a new bed, I want, I want,  I, I, I, I. Thats all I think about.  Mine mine mine. There are people sleeping outside on the ground with little, if any blankets. I have so many blankets. I have so much more than I'm thankful for. Those people are thankful for the little food and warmth they have. We are self consumed. That's what is wrong with our world today.

I'm going to work on being thankful and not thinking about myself as much. I'm going to think of others who might be hurting or broken.

Much love,
Dakota