From the desk of Steve Shultz:
Never in my life, after burdens and trials, have I felt more compassion toward others than I feel now. Maybe it's only because I'm now over 50 years old and the years have a way of mellowing a man or a woman.
Yet Jesus, at a very young age, was "moved with compassion" and it seems that was when He healed the most people. None of us will likely ever feel compassion at the level Jesus did, but we will feel a certain level of it.
I've actually had to begin learning to hand my burdens, and even some compassion for others, over to the Lord, as it became too hard for me to carry such a high level of compassion. I was almost being incapacitated by it. But then I suppose that's what is meant when we are instructed to CAST OUR CARES (and compassion) upon HIM...because HE is the Great COMPASSIONATE ONE!
Here are some wonderful resources by James and Michal Ann Goll who have personally battled health issues to such a degree that I can see how they would be among the most compassionate people I know.
There's something about hurting that causes one to understand the hurts of others - at least at a much deeper level. And this is why we are blessed to have a Savior, Jesus, who has been completely TOUCHED IN HIS HEART by every feeling of our infirmities.
Bring your compassion to as many people as you can, but ultimately, bring those people to Jesus, who will then move upon your compassion and heal those you pray for.
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Living in His Presence
by James W. & Michal Ann Goll
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Blessings,
Steve Shultz
Michal Ann Goll:
"The Journey of COMPASSION"
"External religious worship (religion as it is expressed in outward acts) that is pure and unblemished in the sight of God the Father is this: to visit and help and care for the orphans and widows in their affliction and need, and to keep oneself unspotted and uncontaminated from the world." James 1:27 (Amplified Bible)
Compassionate Acts
Our Christian lives are meant to be a journey into the heart of God. The journey begins with a look at the source of all compassionate action - God's compassionate heart. You will discover that our compassion is a reflection of the All Compassionate One.
John writes, "He who does not love has not become acquainted with God, for God is love" (1 John 4:8). Our love, replicated in our actions toward others, is a reflection of the depth of our relationship with God.
Yes, God is love, and the essence of His being is manifested in His acts toward us. His conduct toward people reveals His compassion for people. Those who bear His nature will also reflect His character in their actions in the human city. He longs for us to become love and compassion in the midst of a world starving for just a little love.
In order to do so, however, we must get to know Him intimately and personally, as Jesus did. We must be connected to the Source and allow His love to flow through us. As that love begins to freely flow to us from our Father, it will eventually flow through us to others in loving words and compassionate acts.
It was Catherine's husband, William Booth, who urged the members of his army to "try tears," when all else failed, and she and General Booth shed many tears as they journeyed together in fulfilling the Father's purposes. Lord Byron once said that the dew of compassion is a tear...and so it is.
Similarly, Jesus frequently wept when He saw the needs of the people and was moved with compassion to do something about them. He sowed in tears and reaped in joy, and you can do the same, for His power and anointing rests upon you.
Like William and Catherine Booth, we must unite our hearts to go forth in compassion to a hurting world. We realize, though, that we still have a lot to learn about converting "desire" into "deed." In many ways our journey of turning compassion into action has just begun.
Each step of the way, however, we have learned to look to Jesus, who truly is the personification of compassion. The lives of those who have gone before us will also serve as a source of great inspiration. They will encourage us to reshape our world as they reshaped their world by the love of God.
So, Let the Journey of Compassion Begin! Will You Join Me?
Over the past several years I've been on a personal journey of amazing breadth and depth. I must have more of Jesus, and I am determined to know Him more fully than I've ever known Him before. I want to take you on this journey with me. Will you join me?
Certainly, I have loved the Lord for as long as I can remember. Through the years He has been wooing me and drawing me deeper and deeper into His heart. Like a tractor beam, His gaze has utterly captured me. As in any relationship, if I want more of Him, I must give Him more of me.
This may sound simple, but the ramifications run a deep course through my innermost being and form my life's very destiny. I must learn to walk, talk, and live as Jesus did and as He continues to do. This is my journey - a journey into the heart of God, where I will and must learn His ways.
An Encounter in Thailand - You Have to Be Available
On a trip to Thailand over a year ago, I found myself sitting in a Mexican restaurant in Bangkok. The young ladies who worked as servers were wearing cowboy hats, cowboy boots, and other western wear. I thought it was really funny to see such outfits in Bangkok, never mind a Mexican restaurant!
I'd been in Thailand for a couple of weeks and had eaten a variety of dishes, some of which caused me to wonder about their ingredients, and I was gaining a little skill in eating with chopsticks. This Mexican restaurant represented my first opportunity to taste home foods and flavors with which I was more familiar.
My friends and I were having a delightful conversation - a nice respite from our hectic schedule of prayer meetings, travel, sleeping in different hotels, and many, many meetings. As I looked around the room and through the front window, I noticed a young man who was standing outside. He was holding a sign, and he had several little toys dangling on fine strings all around him.
From the booth where we were sitting, I noticed his sign read that he was deaf and he had created these little toys, which were crickets, out of bits of bamboo. He was selling them for a modest price of 20 baht (approximately 50 cents) a piece, so he could buy food.
Though he was a simple and needy young man, he didn't look like he was begging. He stood upright, showed no emotion, and did not really try to sell me anything. He did not have the typical pleading eyes of a beggar, and he did not gesture for my attention.
I was impressed by how he stood with an air of quiet self-respect and seeming uprightness of heart. I will never forget the look I saw in his eyes. We did not exchange a word between us, but our hearts touched each other that day as we peered into each other's souls. I believe I gave him something that day - something far more than the 20 baht it cost me to buy a cricket. I gave him my promise to do all I could with my life, to make a difference in his life and in the lives of others like him.
At the same time, he gave me something, something I desperately needed. He gave me the privilege of touching his life, of making a difference. I caught a glimpse into the heart of God. This young man showed me that you don't have to be somebody who is important or famous; you just have to be available. You have to be willing to engage in the journey and walk the path that Jesus walks every day. This is what the journey of learning God's ways is all about.
Whenever I look at my little cricket that I bought from this young man, I remember this treasured experience, and I renew my commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus, I continue on the journey that has been set before me.
Do You Want More?
Do you want more of Jesus? Is your heart engaged with the things that move His heart? Do you want more of the Father's love deposited in your heart? How can we understand this amazing love that He so deeply desires for us to experience? His love is beyond our mental abilities to comprehend.
Many of us have tainted understandings of what a father is like. Our understanding of fatherhood is shaped by our childhood experiences with our earthly fathers. So, we have to ask ourselves, "What do I really know about God and His heart? What do I really know about His mercy and compassion?"
To know His mercy and compassion, we must open our hearts to Him. We must go to the place where He exposes the tenderness of His heart - into the written Word.
Act Justly and Love Mercy
In the book, The Justice God Is Seeking, the author and our friend David Ruis writes, "Steeped in humility, we are called to act justly and to love mercy. Don't miss this! Justice is an action, to be done in and through the power of Christian community, but mercy is to be loved. It is not an action; it is a passion."
True compassion and mercy stem from a passion for the Father's heart. Do you love mercy? When we learn to truly love mercy and compassion, out of our passion for God's heart, we will be motivated to act justly.
Justice and righteousness form the foundation of the Father's throne. The psalmist writes, "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne: mercy and loving-kindness and truth go before Your face" (Psalm 89:14).
Go to God's throne of grace as we begin and ask Him for a grace of impartation and a spirit of revelation to come upon you. Ask God to enlighten your mind and to fill your heart with His fire. Open your heart to the Holy Spirit and let Him speak to you, guide you, teach you, and move you. Let the river of God, which is always full, flow forth in all its energy and power.
Consider the Weak and the Poor
Did you ever consider the fact that happiness comes from walking in compassion? This is what David meant when he wrote, "Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is he who considers the weak and the poor: the Lord will deliver him in the time of evil and trouble" (Psalm 41:1). What a glorious promise this is!
The psalmist then goes on to list some of the other benefits to be derived from considering the weak and the poor (see Psalm 41:2-4):
The Lord will protect us.
The Lord will keep us alive.
We shall be called "blessed in the land."
We will not be given over to our enemies.
The Lord will sustain us.
The Lord will refresh us.
The Lord will strengthen us.
The Lord will turn, change, and transform us.
These are just some of the things that happen when we are filled with compassion and reach out in love to others. Doesn't this make you want to really be in tune with God's heart as you begin your journey? Then consider the following thoughts.
God's Heart Concerning Honor
The following Scripture shook me to the core of my being as its truth penetrated my spirit: "He who oppresses the poor reproaches, mocks, and insults his Maker, but he who is kind and merciful to the needy honors Him" (Proverbs 14:31). I don't know how this could be any clearer.
Do you want to honor God? If your answer is yes, you must operate in kindness and mercy to the needy. To do otherwise brings reproach, mockery, and insult to God!
God's Heart Concerning Lending
In Proverbs 19:17 we read, "He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, and that which he has given He will repay to him."
This reminds me of what Jesus said, "…Truly I tell you, in so far as you did it for one of the least (in the estimation of men) of these My brethren, you did it for Me" (Matthew 25:40).
What you give to the poor, you give to God, and He promises to repay you!
God's Heart Concerning Righteousness
God wants our righteousness to be consistent, as the following verse from Proverbs shows: "The (consistently) righteous man knows and cares for the rights of the poor, but the wicked man has no interest in such knowledge" (Proverbs 29:7).
Look at the contrast that is painted for us here. Whereas the righteous person knows and cares for the rights of the poor, the wicked person is completely uninterested in such knowledge and activity.
I would like to think of myself as a righteous person, but there have been many, many times when I've had to repent of my lack of mercy and my unwillingness to tune my heart to God's heart.
My desire is to be like the woman who is described in Proverbs 31:20, "She opens her hand to the poor, yes, she reaches out her filled hands to the needy (whether in body, mind, or spirit)." This verse speaks volumes to me, for it shows a righteous woman in action.
The Compassion of Jesus
Jesus always saw the need first, then He was moved with a compassion so strong that it always led Him to do something in response to the need. Matthew writes, "When He saw the throngs, He was moved with pity and sympathy for them, because they were bewildered (harassed and distressed and dejected and helpless), like sheep without a shepherd" (Matthew 9:36).
He then went on to tell His disciples to pray that God would send laborers into His harvest. We need to engage in the same kind of prayer today, for so many people are confused like sheep without a shepherd. God is looking for people who will go out into the fields that are now white unto harvest. (See Matthew 9:37-38.)
The Greek word for compassion (pity and sympathy) that is used here is splanchnizomai, and it means to be moved deep within. It involves a sense of yearning in behalf of others.
If you have compassion, you will be moved to take action as Jesus always was and is. God wants you to know His compassion, receive His compassion, live His compassion, and share His compassion with others.
All the Scriptures within this chapter open God's heart to you. He is your loving Heavenly Father, and He wants you to share in His compassion.
Compassion will move so deeply within your being that many times you will find yourself moved to the point of tears and agony. Ah, this is a beautiful place. God places great value in your tears, and as we turn to the next chapter, you will discover this is a deep well which moves Heaven on behalf of others.
Let's Pray: Heavenly Father, we come to You right now in the name of Jesus. We ask You to light the fire of passion in our lives and let it become the kind of compassion that doesn't just look at the need, but looks to You. Help us to become so passionate for loving You and knowing Your heart that we will move in compassion to all those in need.
We ask that You will bring about a corporate shift of thinking and acting in the entire Body of Christ, that Your people would become passionate about compassion by being passionate for You.
We cry out to You, Father, and ask that You would take the Scriptures we've read and discussed in this chapter and drop their truths deep within our hearts. Let Your Word continue to flow within the depths of our spirits so we will be able to receive all the spiritual nutrients You have for us. Drop Your plumb line of justice through all of our thoughts and feelings, all of our traditions and training, and let us learn to do justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with You.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
Blessings to Each of You!
Michal Ann Goll
Encounters Network
Email: info@encountersnetwork.com
