An Ounce of Compassion
Sometimes I look around and think "How hard would it be for
someone to show a little compassion to another person?" Perhaps it's someone in
our family or someone on the street or someone down on their luck, but they may
need an ounce of compassion. I feel at times that hearts bleed for love such as
this and that a heart wound can hurt even more than a physical
blow.
What does an ounce of compassion look like to you? In the
world we live in compassion seems to be a thing of the past, at times. I think
an ounce of it may be more valuable than gold to a heart gone astray, a heart in
need, a heart that has been broken. I hate to say that there are times that I
think compassion is lacking because of the self-absorption of new generations,
or the "what's in it for me?" mentality.
From
the scripture we read: "Those of us who are strong and able in the faith
need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is
most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us
needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, “How can
I help?”
That’s
exactly what Jesus did. He didn’t make it easy for himself by avoiding people’s
troubles, but waded right in and helped out. “I took on the troubles of the
troubled,” is the way Scripture puts it. Even if it was written in Scripture
long ago, you can be sure it’s written for us. God wants the combination of his steady,
constant calling and warm, personal counsel in Scripture to come to
characterize us, keeping us alert for
whatever he will do next. May our dependably steady and warmly personal God
develop maturity in you so that you get along with each other as well as Jesus
gets along with us all. Then we’ll be a choir—not our voices only, but our very
lives singing in harmony in a stunning anthem to the God and Father of our
Master Jesus!" Romans 15:1-6 The Message
What
I get out of these verses is I serve a God who is compassionate to people, who
inspired scripture that says we are to lend a hand to those who falter and that
may not be convenient for us. And it may not be a one-time thing. Surely it must
be bathed in prayer as many of us know that we don't want to be in a codependent
relationship. Key verses to me are, "God wants the combination of his
steady, constant calling and warm, personal counsel in Scripture to come to
characterize us, keeping us alert for whatever he will
do next. May our dependably steady and warmly personal God develop maturity in
you so that you get along with each other as well as Jesus gets along with us
all."
Part of the healing Jesus brings increases as we reach out to others as He did. He was touched with the feelings of our infirmities. When we are touched by the pain of others we point them to a source of comfort.I believe your wound can lead you to God and equip you to lead others to the Lord. It can dazzle the world to see what the Lord can do with a broken heart restored and healed by the blood of Jesus.
"Show me where you bleed,"
Was the woman's
Plea to me,
I was pretty sure I could
But then do I really think
I should?
I bleed for moms,
Kids and families,
I bleed for you
I bleed for me
The sick, the homeless
The addict, all three
For the abused child,
Whose family was wild.
I bleed for the elderly
Though you might say
What's that to me?
Oh, people can't you see?
One day it just might be
You and me.
Bleeding for all to see
Just like Jesus
Did for me.
Show me where you bleed
She said
I bleed from a broken heart.
Show me where you bleed
She said to me
I bleed with words
For all to see
His glory
My story.
It's not finished yet
It's gonna get better
On that I'll bet.
If someone is literally bleeding around you as in a heart wound, here's the
remedy:
In Romans
13:8-10 we read that Love
Fulfills the Law
Let no debt
remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever
loves others has fulfilled the law. The
commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You
shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,”[a] and whatever other command there may be, are
summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as
yourself.” Love
does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
