compassion

Spare Dimes

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Broken Piggybank Shows Financial DepositWhat is it that gets your attention? Is it a shiny new sports car or a rugged new four wheel drive pickup? Is it a new piece of furniture to replace a well-worn family heirloom?

What is it that turns your attention from stylized consumerism and an inward focus to one that is beyond rank me-ism and centered on the needs of others? When was the last time you gave a needy person a spare dime or found some time you could give to a worthy cause?

By worthy cause, I don’t mean something that will help you achieve a higher position on the social rung of some ladder. Jesus wasn’t nearly as worried about climbing ladders and pampering the high and mighty as He was helping the down and lowly.

The power brokers of the day were the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and they caught the attention of Jesus more than once, and He chided them for their abuse of privilege.

The under-privileged also caught the attention of Jesus. He loved the outcasts of society—even the untouchable lepers felt His compassionate touch. The blind and lame who had been falsely accused of suffering due to sin, were helped and healed by the touch of the Master’s hand.

Jesus never turned a deaf ear to those who pleaded for help or a blind eye to the less fortunate who were within the scope of His vision. Regardless of who they were; what they needed; or, where they were, Jesus recognized their individual needs and they gave them His full attention.

Here’s a question or two to keep you thinking: Are you aware of what you deem worthy of your care? When was the last time your fingernails got dirty as you ministered to the needs of others?

The Belly Brigade

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anyoneThe Belly Brigade has only one requirement to enter, and it’s not a belly that shakes like a bowl full of jelly—that’s Santa Claus. By the way, there are only 59 days until Christmas.

Unlike most amusement parks, there are no height restrictions. You cannot be too tall or too short to participant. height-restrictions-apply...

When it comes to speed, you do not have to be like NFL quarterback, Geno Smith who has run the 40 yard dash in 4.59 seconds. You can’t be too fast or too slow.speed

You do not need the beauty of Miss America, the voice of country singer George Strait, or the agility of Olympic Champion Michael Phelps, and you do not need an IQ level that gains you membership into Mensa, the high IQ society.

You join the Belly Brigade when you meet the requirement of just one boot camp basic experience that is summarized in the word—SPLANCHOLOGY.

A form of this word is found in Matthew 9:36 where it describes the emotions of Jesus: When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and worn out, like sheep without a shepherd.

Splanchology is that kick-in-the-gut-moment when you feel the needs of another deep down inside of yourself.

Jesus was a Splanchologist in every sense of the word. When He looked at people He was moved with compassion because He could see their needs and feel their pain.

By the way, the Belly Brigade has no age restrictions. I joined on May 25, 1965 when I was 12 years old. I didn’t know how to describe the-kick-in the gut-feeling that overwhelmed me, but I do know that I was moved with compassion for my mother and my two brothers, and they were Splanchologists for me as well.

Then Jesus, the Splanchologist, said to His disciples: The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers (more Splanchologists) into His harvest (Mt.9:37).

What the world needs is not more hanging judges or bounty hunters, but more people who will see the needs of others, be moved with compassion, start to work in the harvest, and in so doing—enlist in the Belly Brigade.
Think About It!

The Healing Power of Touch

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Just three insignificant letters form in the mind and reverberate off the vocal chords to ask a painful question: Why? This question is not asked in our moments of joy and happiness; it is in the seconds of sorrow that seem to last for eternity that we ask: Why?

Due to the nature of my work, I am often present when someone is overcome by the power of some gut wrenching and heart rending tragedy or trial. While a person is languishing in the fog of grief, he may turn a deaf ear to the cold language of theology, and at the same time listen for the warm sound of the first language he learned—the language of touch.

In Born to Be Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life, Dacher Keltner, a professor of psychology at the University of California, referred to touch as “our richest means of emotional expression” throughout life.

Research conducted by The University of Wisconsin and published in the National Academy of Sciences, found a link between children who had been deprived of close physical contact and lower levels of social-bonding hormones. The research seemed to indicate that the first language of touch or infant cuddling is vital to a child’s emotional well-being.

Evidence suggests that a warm touch can trigger the release of oxytocin. This hormone does a couple of things: It helps to create a sensation of trust, and it also helps to reduce the levels of the stress hormone cortisol.
Does this mean there is a biological benefit to burden-bearing words of Jesus in Matthew 11? Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

The next time you or a friend get punched in the gut with the combined power of three little insignificant letters, W-H-Y, remember there is some spiritual as well as biological benefit to embracing this principle of Scripture: Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ . . . as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith (Galatians 6).

Surface Similarities With A Depth of Difference

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If you are like me, you may know a little about Jane Goodall and the research she did with chimpanzees.  Goodall and other scientists have written about similarities between the DNA of chimps and humans with a genetic commonality as high as 94 to 98%.

This surface similarity doesn’t tell the whole story.  According to an article in the Harvard Gazette, there is a depth of difference:  Among the 3 billion base pairs in the DNA  of both humans and chimpanzees, researchers found differences in 40 million sites.  It is in those sites where the differences between the two species lie.

An article in Scientific American reported that the 2% difference between the genetic composition of a chimp and a human represents at least 15 million changes in our genome . . .

Most of us spend little or no time studying the differences between the genomes of chimp and human.  We do, however, have a lifetime of experience in the perplexing way we as humans interact with each other.

Some people are incredibly kind and compassionate in the way they consistently treat others.  There is a surface similarity in the words kindness and compassion.  In fact, they are so similar; we often fail to note the depth of difference.

When we think of kindness, the qualities that should come to mind are the friendly and generous ways we treat people.   This is a spirit of benevolence that reflects our concern for others.

Compassion on the other hand is the spirit of mercy.  This is the seed that blossomed in the life of the Good Samaritan and moved him to help the badly-beaten man who was in need.

I believe it is possible for us to be kind without being compassionate; however, I don’t think a person can be compassionate without also being kind.  It doesn’t take much thought to know that Jesus calls us to be both.

Note:  The information about chimps and humans is excerpted from A Rat IS A PIG IS A DOG IS A BOY.  This book examines the agenda of the animal rights movement and contrasts it with proponents of animal welfare.

The Frustration of Forgetfulness

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How many of you guys have been in the tool shed or garage and laid a tool down and couldn’t find it again?  Ever gone to the grocery store and forgot the shopping list and you are clueless as you walk the aisle of the store?  During the commercial break have you gone to the kitchen for something but forgot what it was you were after?   How about this one:  Man I can remember that face but not her name.

I know I am not alone in my memory deficiencies.  I know some people who make notes in their cell phones.  I know others who have tied a string around their finger or used a band aid.

I have tried many different techniques to improve my memory, but there is a common weakness to each of these:  I have to remember something to make it work!

One thing that we should remember is that God never forgets.  The prophet Isaiah (49:16) recorded the words of God:  I have written your name on my hand. 

Fast forward to 33 A.D. and the hand of God is nailed to the cross.  Why?  Because the name of His children are also written on His heart.  That is is something worth remembering.