'compassion' Tagged Posts
Daily Devotions
When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it. But this was very displeasing to Jonah, and he became angry.” vss.10-4:1 Jonah 3:10-4:1 Jonah was called the reluctant prophet for good reason. He had no love for Assyria, the fierce enemy of Israel, and when God told him to go to Nineveh, the capital,…
Daily Devotions
As a father has compassion for his children, so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him.” vs. 13 Psalm 103:11-13 Even though God is beyond description and it’s really impossible for our puny minds to understand or comprehend the Divine Presence, we still have a need to use words in our conversation about God. As a result, humans have always used metaphors to try to communicate that which we sense is true about God. We lift them from…
Daily Devotions
Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns.” vs. 13 Matthew 14:13-14 John the Baptist had been killed while in the custody of King Herod at Machereus, a palace east of the Dead Sea, and it didn’t take long for the news to travel to where Jesus was doing ministry at the north end of the…
Daily Devotions
“The Lord watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.” vs. 20 Psalm 145:14-21 When we read our scriptures we are tempted to take to heart the verses that we agree with and totally discount those with which we have issues. And we’re not alone. Nearly all people are adept at cherry picking as they study the bible, loving the parts that support positions they already hold, and ignoring those that don’t. The psalmist who…
Daily Devotions
The Lord is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.” vs. 9 Psalm 145:8-9 These few words from the psalmist contain all the truth that we humans will ever need to hear, and it’s undoubtedly the best news ever, yet we find it enormously hard to believe in our hearts. Oh, we don’t mind hearing that the Lord is good to us, and that God’s compassion includes us. We actually welcome that good news,…
Daily Devotions
Turn to me and be gracious to me; give your strength to your servant; save the child of your serving girl.” vs. 16 Psalm 86:14-17 The psalmist was in a tough spot. He had enemies, ruffians who were indifferent to the Lord, and they were seeking his life. At the end of his rope he pleads for God’s intervention and rescue, asking for strength in his time of trouble. He had been trained from his youth that God could be…
Daily Devotions
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. The Lord is faithful in all his words, and gracious in all his deeds.” vs. 13 Psalm 145:11-14 The psalmist uses royal imagery in talking about God, and his metaphors seem inadequate to people of our day. But for him they worked just fine. The Lord was like the most wonderful king who could ever be imagined, and his kingdom would endure forever. And while we may…
Daily Devotions
The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The Lord is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.” vss. 8-9 Psalm 145:8-10 For many in the United States the Fourth of July is a time for speeches, flag waving, and family gatherings–a festive day, often capped off in the evening with concerts and fireworks. Some will recall the Revolutionary War and the Declaration of Independence, and there will…
Daily Devotions
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” vs. 36 Matthew 9:35-38 Jesus had been overwhelmed by the crowds that he encountered as he began his ministry in Galilee. Everywhere he went they flocked to hear his words and be touched by his healing hands, and his heart was filled with compassion. If we’ve ever wondered about our mission as his followers, there really can be no…
Daily Devotions
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” vs. 8 Acts 1:6-14 For a couple of decades following his death and resurrection, followers of Jesus eagerly anticipated his return in glory to complete what he had begun. They were still looking for the restoration of the kingdom of Israel. But when Luke wrote his gospel…
Daily Devotions
As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’” vss. 1-2 John 9:1-7 It was natural for the disciples to have questions about the blind man. In their world, a person blind from birth would be an anomaly, and they wanted to know how and why things like this occurred. There had to be a cause, and they strongly believed that…
Daily Devotions
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.” vss. 1-3 Psalm 23 When Samuel’s one-person pastoral search committee led him to select the boy-shepherd, David, as the next king of Israel, he established a job description for godly leaders that will persist for all time. The prophets regularly described the kings…