Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Jesus – the one with Compassion

Mark 1v41 “Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man.”

Last week we looked at authority. The beauty with Jesus’ authority is that it was always directed by compassion.

We have the phrase “compassion fatigue”. It means that we only have a limited amount of compassion, and so when we see so many stories of need, we start to switch off and no longer care. As I read the gospels, Jesus got tired, but he never seems to tire of compassion. Oh yes, he questions motives sometimes, and other times he needs to correct, but underpinning all is a heart of compassion. A heart that wants to see people set free, know the truth, and live in the light.

The good news is that compassion has a source. Compassion is about putting ourselves in another’s shoes and seeing their perspective and wanting their good.  This is based on us loving others as we love ourselves. We know such love comes from the Father of love.

Compassion does not mean that we do not care for ourselves. Indeed, if we do not care for ourselves, we will not be able to show compassion towards others. We have to realise that at the heart of caring for ourselves is nurturing our connection with God. It is as we nurture that connection, as we “abide in him”, that we are able to receive his love. And “we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us”. Of course that does not mean that we can do everything in the world, but it does mean we can do everything that God calls us to do.

Receive God’s compassion towards you today and then reflect: Who can you show compassion to today?

With love and blessing,

Roland