Tag Archives: Compassion

Nov25

God’s Compassion

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“Yet this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope:

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him.”

Lamentations 3:  21 – 24 (NIV)

What an incredible feeling to know that God’s compassions for us never fail…they are new every single morning!  So each new day when you see the beautiful sunrise, remind yourself that God’s compassion for you is renewed and refreshed.  No matter what happened the day before ~ or in the distant past ~ there’s always a glimmering ray of hope…like a bright and glorious ray of sunshine.

Because of God’s great, immeasurable love for you, He will never forget you nor abandon you.  He hasn’t turned His back on you.  Even though you might have walked away from Him, He’s right there waiting for your return.  His compassions never ever fail.

com·pas·sion:   feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering. (dictionary.com)

The Bible is full of stories about God’s compassion for His children.  In the aftermath of rebellion and sin – times when the oppression and hardship on His followers were a direct result of their own mistakes — God’s great love and faithfulness to them was constant and never-ending.    When they finally called on Him, He was ready to compassionately step in and alleviate their suffering and hardship. “And when they cried out to you again, you heard from heaven, and in your compassion you delivered them time after time.” (Nehemiah 9:28 NIV)

God never changes, and His love for you is no different than His love for His children in the Bible.  You are His treasured possession.  Day after day, time after time, His compassions for your are continually renewed and never-ending. 

“The Lord is good to all; He has compassion on all he has made.”  Psalm 145:9

“Who is a God like you,
who pardons sin and forgives the transgression
of the remnant of his inheritance?
You do not stay angry forever
but delight to show mercy.
You will again have compassion on us;
you will tread our sins underfoot
and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.”

Micah 7:18-19

Jan17

Getting Your Hands Dirty

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“Getting your Hands Dirty”


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40A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”

41Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” 42Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured. Mark 1:40 – 42 NIV

Leprosy was an incurable, disabling skin disease which terrified people. In keeping with Jewish Law, lepers were considered unclean and were unable to participate in any religious or social activity. They were the ultimate outcasts of Jewish society. They were banned to live in leper colonies outside the main areas of the cities and were not allowed to mingle with the healthy population.

However, when Jesus saw this diseased, leprous man, he had compassion on him. Despite his visual appearance and all the dictates of Jewish law, Jesus reached out and TOUCHED this man with his hand of healing. This reaction went against every belief of all those people who were watching. Jesus looked beyond the disease and saw inside the man. In doing so, Jesus demonstrated a valuable example to his followers. The real value of a person is on the inside. Outward appearances of a person’s body may be deformed or diseased, but the person inside is no less valuable to God. No person is too disgusting or disfigured or diseased for God’s touch.

In a sense we have all been diseased and deformed by the ugliness and disfigurement of sin, and we could, therefore, be considered leprous in the eyes of God. Instead of looking away from us in disgust, God had compassion on all sinners when He sent His son, Jesus, who touched us with love and forgiveness and gave us the opportunity to be healed.

When is the last time you got your “hands dirty” in the name of Jesus? When your feel repulsed by someone, take a moment and think about how God feels about that person…and how he feels about you. Stop and ask yourself, “What would Jesus do in that same situation?”