'compassion' Tagged Posts
Daily Devotions
Psalm 69:16-18…“Do not hide your face from your servant, for I am in distress—make haste to answer me.” vs. 17 This psalmist seems to have run out of patience with the Lord. His passion for the temple has gotten him a boatload of enemies, and they never tire of tormenting him. Through it all the psalmist has continued to trust in the Lord as a source of mercy and steadfast love! But at this moment he’s just not feeling it!…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 9:35-37…“When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” vs. 36 Sometimes when we hear the stories of refugees and asylum seekers trying to enter our country we get angry. Some wonder why these people don’t just stay in their own countries. And we have even less patience for the homeless people squatting wherever they can in all of our major cities. Our primary concern seems to…
Daily Devotions
Romans 5:6-8…“But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.” vs. 8 Some folks struggle with the meaning of the cross, especially as it relates to a satisfaction theory of the atonement. We can’t get our heads around the notion that the death of one person could atone for the sins of all humanity. And that’s okay! All those theories were developed by early Christians as they tried to make sense…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 9:18-26…“Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, ‘Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.’ And instantly the woman was made well.” vs. 22 As Jesus had traveled through Galilee’s villages and towns in the course of his ministry he had developed a reputation as a healer. When word went out that he was in the area large crowds gathered, often to hear him speak, but also for the ill to receive his healing touch. And when that…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 9:9-13…“As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him.” vs. 9 There is a painting in the Contarelli Chapel in Rome by the Italian master, Caravaggio, called “The Calling of St Matthew.” It shows Jesus, having entered a room, standing and pointing with an outstretched arm at one of five shadowy figures sitting at a table counting money.…
Daily Devotions
Hosea 5:15-6:3…“Come, let us return to the LORD; for it is he who has torn, and he will heal us; he has struck down, and he will bind us up.” vs. 1 Hosea was a prophet in the Northern Kingdom of Israel during the 8th century B.C.E. It was a time of turmoil and intrigue, with Israel having allied itself with Syria against Judah. While both Israel and Judah claimed a connection to the Lord, neither seems to have taken…
Daily Devotions
1 Corinthians 1:14-1… “For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power.” vs. 17 We’re not used to hearing words like this from preachers in our times. In our congregations it’s all about eloquence and wisdom, and people are likely to leave if that’s not what they’re getting in sermons. But Paul had an entirely different perspective. He…
Daily Devotions
As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.” vs. 13 Isaiah 66:13-14 When a child falls and sustains some sort of injury, often the first impulse is to run for mama! A mother’s hug and embrace have amazing healing qualities, and if a crying boy or girl can somehow snuggle for some extra moments and be held close, the tears will often subside. The prophet was familiar with that sort of…
Daily Devotions
If then God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could hinder God?” vs. 17 Acts 11:11-30 This was Peter’s clinching argument as he talked to the Jerusalem leaders of the Christian community. The question was a good one, “Who was I that I could hinder God?” Peter realized that God’s will would be done, and it would be best for him if he didn’t…
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…