Friday, August 18
I have compassion
Scripture: Mark 8
Mark 8:1–2 In those days there was another large crowd with nothing to eat. So Jesus called his disciples and said to them, 2 “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have already been here with me three days, and they have nothing to eat.
Observation
When Jesus saw a large hungry crowd, He had compassion on them. If this was like the last time Jesus had faced a hungry crowd, the disciples only wanted to send them home hungry. (I am often more like the disciples than like Jesus.) Jesus’ compassion moved Him to action: He fed the crowd.
The word “compassion” is a beautiful Greek word (splanchnizomai) which literally meant “to be moved in one’s innards” (splanchna). It referred to affection or compassion that you felt in your gut. It’s a very visceral word.
When faced with human need, Jesus felt compassion and He felt it deeply and acted to meet the need.
He also felt it often. This word is frequently used of Jesus towards the crowd or individuals.
“I have compassion.”
Application
It’s one thing to feel compassion. It’s another to let it move you to action as it did Jesus. I’m often content to just feel sorry for someone and then move on. Of course, the reality is that we are faced with so much need that we can’t begin to address it all. But we must do something.
A number of years ago I first heard the term “compassion fatigue.” It refers to a lack of compassion due to overuse of the compassion muscle. Jesus never seemed to suffer from this—but I do. I still feel compassion when faced with human need, but just not as consistently or deeply as Jesus.
So my prayer today is that God would impart more of the heart of Jesus to me, that I’d feel compassion more deeply and consistently.
I have compassion.
Prayer: Lord, I love You and want to be more like You…and here’s one way: give me more compassion for those around me. I can’t fix everyone or everything. But I don’t want that to become an excuse to do nothing. Give me compassion and show me where to apply it.
More: Jeremiah 35-36, Psalm 96, Revelation 21