Compassion

Deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it.

That’s a dictionary definition. I’ve been thinking about compassion a lot lately, and why I so often fall short of it. I think that we can miss the mark stoically and wish to alleviate suffering without feeling anything toward our brother or sister. We can miss the mark emotionally and be overwhelmed with sympathy without actually doing anything about it.

I think I mess up because my awareness is so shallow. Deep awareness is what Christ felt when he was ‘moved with compassion’ and what Paul meant when he said to ‘pray without ceasing.’ I can’t claim to have compassion because, though I have the ear of the sovereign God, I choose to think on trivial things over intercession. God asks me to feel, to care, to think, to do, and to pray. Over and over.