You know how utterly pious I can be! That’s not a question..although you can answer if you like. But my “quiet” time with God was anything but quiet today; as the words He allowed me to read were not silent as they charged at my heart right from the page of my devotional book. When God said that His word is SHARP and ACTIVE He really meant it. Like a surgeon cutting right to the core…to the source of yet one more cell in my heart infected with the contamination of a judgmental and self-righteous disease. Why would I think that it’s actually my place to decide or decipher the “whys” of a trial or tragic circumstance going on in the lives of others. Especially another believer.
The writer of my devotional book quoted the passage from John chapter 9 verse 3…where the disciples asked God who it was that sinned, the blind beggar (born that way) or his parents….what an assumption! But whooaaaa! Before I even had time to pronounce judgment on the Christ-following disciples, I felt the scalpel go deep within my heart. Had I not just a day before verbalized the demise of a fellow Christian, thinking it my place to wonder…hmmm…they are really into it…wonder what sin may be in their lives that is bringing about all this chaos?
Joseph Stowell described the disciples as being “detached”…which really convicted my heart. I didn’t want to think that “I” had become so callous as to be considered “detached” from Jesus and His compassion for others…especially those in desperate need and circumstances. Suffering SHOULD arouse in my heart a desire to relieve their pain, or comfort their hearts in sorrow. The last thing that looks like Jesus to an unbelieving world is for a follower of Christ to sit in judgment and analyze the whys and what for’s without showing comfort, compassion and seeking to meet their need with the kindness of God. “If we would only learn to see tragedy as a platform for the kind of compassion that reflects the power of God’s glory through us, we could have a far greater impact on our world” – Joseph Stowell.
Scripture says that “the kindness of God leads men to repentance”. Who am I – if not a reflection of God’s kindness…how He has faithfully shown compassion and kindness to me. So Ang…can the curiosity and keep that storehouse of kindness overflowing – so I can share it with those who desperately need it. I’d be a dead cat if it were not for the grace and compassion of God (you know, curiosity killed the cat) but through His compassion – I can show compassion to others. May His loving kindness and compassion be seen in me as my heart heals from yet another surgery!
