Ordinary Time

Pause

“Compassion is the sometimes fatal capacity for feeling what it's like to live inside somebody else's skin. It is the knowledge that there can never really be any peace and joy for me until there is peace and joy finally for you too.”

Frederick Buechner, Wishful Thinking, 1973

We serve a God who knows what it’s like to walk in our shoes. We follow Christ, who looks at us with compassion and says, “Go in peace.” And, we find joy in the embrace of God’s Spirit.

Will you accept God’s compassion for you? Will you share such compassion with those around you?

Pause. Breathe. Soak it in. God’s compassion is yours. Today and every day.

Listen

Certainly the faithful love of the Lord hasn’t ended; certainly God’s compassion isn’t through! They are renewed every morning. Great is your faithfulness. I think: The Lord is my portion! Therefore, I’ll wait for him.

Lamentations 3:22-24

Think

Mornings are hard. At the mere flutter of your eyelashes, your mind floods with memories of a day gone by and trepidations for the day to come. You hit “snooze” one more time, hoping those nine extra minutes of slumber will make the day more approachable.

It rarely does, and by the time you realize you’ve been “snoozing” for the last hour, you’re filled with the overwhelming awareness that you just fell behind before you ever got started. A day once full of potential is now a day in need of second chances.

On such a morning, compassion is hard to find. For others, and especially for yourself. Very quickly, our lives get sucked into an endless search for our lost keys.

But we can be certain of this: God’s compassion is never lost in the shuffle. God’s compassion for us is renewed every morning. Each day, God loves us before we take the chance to love ourselves. Wait for God this morning, and allow the Lord’s unfailing compassion to pour over you in love.

Emily Holladay

Pray

Oh Lord, your faithfulness is greater than I can comprehend. Allow me to see myself today as you see me. Renew my spirit in your unfailing compassion and love. Amen.

Go

What would happen if you believed God’s compassion is deep enough and wide enough for you? Would you accept it? Would you share it?

Go today, confident in this: The God who made you came to Earth to walk in your shoes, that you might know the overwhelming peace and joy made just for you.

What are you waiting for? Go! Share this wonderful news!