Compassion-Based Solutions

I’m guessing Jesus often was challenged by his disciples’ inability to get on his page. The Gospels give us plenty of scenes illustrating this – when they thought he was a ghost, when they squabbled over seats in heaven, when they fell asleep in the garden – to name a few.

Mark 8 records a familiar not-on-his-page scene where they asked him, “Where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?” “Them” are the people Jesus had noted had been “with me three days and have nothing to eat.” The Message records the disciples’ response this way: “What do you expect us to do about it? Buy food out here in the desert?”

They had a point, but he hadn’t asked for it. In the two prior verses, he had simply made a statement of compassion: “I have compassion for these people. They have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance.” He knew what was about to happen. I can’t say for sure if he was looking for a response from the disciples. If he was, after hearing it I doubt he thought, “That’s what I was thinking.”

When I read this story recently, I had to ask myself how do I respond when the Holy Spirit nudges me with a compassionate observation. Do I ask, “What do you want me to do about it?” or do I let it move me to action? Jesus didn’t stop with the observation. He found a solution.

As a follower of Christ, as the body of Christ, how do we respond to obvious need? Compassion seeks solutions. Compassion takes action. Compassion links us to God’s heart. Compassion gets us on his page.

Restful Motives

Read these verses this morning: One thing God has spoken, two things I have heard: "Power belongs to you, God, and with you, Lord, is unfailing love"; and, "You reward everyone according to what they have done." Psalm 62:11-12

A few observations:

1. The true source of power is God. Nothing shoud keep me from it.


2. God's power doesn't compromise his fulfillment of unconditional love. He models how to balance the two.


3. God pays attention to what I do-all of it-and rewards me accordingly.


4. What matters most is what I do in His name.

What does this mean for me?

• I can rest because He's in charge.


• All I need to do is check my motives for what I do.


• Rest gets hindered when my motives stray.

Yesterday was my first race for 2012. And what a good one to start out with.
The race was the Bradenton Christian School 5k Panther Prowl. Because of the untimely passing of Don Vautrinot, the race director, the race became truly a community event. I hadn't originally planned on running, but I'm glad I did. I thoroughly enjoyed hearing and observing the body of Christ ministering to the Vautrinot family.
Good job, BCS. Good job, Bradenton. Good job, Church.
If you participated in the 5k, here's where you can find the results.

Where's the "In"

After posting the Morgan quote on waiting, it was interesting yesterday morning to read the following 2 verses from Psalm 33 in my devotional reading:
"We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name."
The preposition "in" seems vital in these two verses. When wait mode is on, where and who I "in" with determines how the wait goes. If I wait in hope, that's much less stressful than waiting in fear. If I rejoice in a doctor, my heart is less relieved than rejoicing in God. If I trust in the power of earthly authority, my security is weakened.
So when it's on, I have to check myself. Am I full of him? If I'm waiting doubtfully, what's causing that? Is my trust and hope in someone or something else more than in him? Where's my IN?

Waiting for God

"Waiting for God is not laziness. Waiting for God is not going to sleep. Waiting for God is not the abandonment of effort. Waiting for God means, first, activity under command; second, readiness for any new command that may come; third, the ability to do nothing until the command is given."
-G. Campbell Morgan

More Than Amazing

This is in our set for Sunday service for the first time. LIKE!

Remaining Blameless

Have you ever wished that the mirror in your bathroom would show more than just your front reflection? It’s impossible to see all of yourself with just that one view, right? Maybe you ladies dream of having a three-way mirror somewhere in your house so you can truly make sure you look perfect before heading out the door.

This thought came to mind this morning as I reflected on a couple of verses David wrote in Psalm 19. In verse 12, he asks a question that reveals another impossibility. The question: “Who can discern their own errors?” Reality is, more often than our pride likes to admit, we know pretty quickly and clearly when we mess up. Reality also is that sometimes we are clueless. We may not immediately know why we respond so strongly to someone else’s opinion or action. After either we’ve imploded or exploded, do we really know what the bottom line is, what causes our errors?

David calls these “hidden faults.” Maybe the hidden fault is jealousy or anger, but I cover it with being rude or giving the silent treatment. David understood that he couldn’t always understand or “see” himself. That’s what led him to follow the question with these two statements: “Forgive my hidden faults. Keep your servant also from willful sins…”

I believe this is where ongoing communication with God is so vital. He can see my hidden faults. He can see all of me, every side, at all times. He is my three-way mirror. And He isn’t there to keep pointing out my imperfections just to beat me down. He’s there to help me reflect Him better. As David puts it in the next verse, he wanted God to keep him “blameless, innocent of great transgression.”

That’s why I stay in the Word. That’s why I seek forgiveness from God and others. That’s why I open myself to receive correction. I can’t possibly discern my own errors. So I stand in front of these mirrors seeking to remain blameless, seeking to reflect Him the best I can as I head out the door.