Compassion

Hey everyone, so this week I’ll be talking about compassion because that’s something that I feel like everyone could use more of. Take my life for example recently there have been some people that I’ve had a hard time being compassionate for them both at work and in my family. But I’ve been working on being more compassionate and seeing the best in people because growing up I was great at that but as I’ve gotten older there are times that I struggle with being compassionate. But that’s something that I’m getting better at each and every day.  

Compassion is about showing that you really care about someone and the community. Ephesians 4:32 (NIV) says;” Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you.” Being compassionate can also mean forgiving others even when you don’t necessarily think they deserve to be forgiven. That’s something that I learned a few years ago when my heart was emotionally broken, and it took some time for me to both realize that it wasn’t my fault and forgive myself for putting so much emotion in my first serious relationship and forgive my ex-boyfriend for cheating and dumping me. That whole situation was overwhelming and 3 years later, I will never let my ex into my life again because I can’t trust him enough to have him in my life. It’s okay to forgive someone but not have them in your life.   

But just like this verse talks about Christ calls us to both forgive and be compassionate. Which I know from personal experience can be hard sometimes especially when it comes to forgiveness. If you are going through the process of forgiving someone that hurt, you. While I can’t say that it’s easy it is possible no matter how long it takes. You will get through this! Matthew 18:21-22 (NIV) says;” Then Peter came to Jesus and asked “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times? Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”  Did you catch that? We’re called to forgive 77 times. I understand that forgiveness is hard but as followers of Christ, we’re called to forgive and have the compassion that Christ shows us. Even if it means having a lot of patience with anyone including yourself. 

Now, let me ask you this. Is there anyone that comes to mind that you need to forgive? If the answer is yes, then this next part is for you, and if there isn’t anyone that you need to forgive then keep this in mind for the future. Something that I’ve learned about forgiveness is that it takes time and compassion to forgive. Because if you don’t have compassion for yourself to let those emotions, come out about whatever has happened to you then you won’t heal whether it’s because someone that you really care about hurt you or you got into a car accident or anything honestly. I can tell you right now that you won’t heal. Now I want you to say to yourself whether it’s out loud or in your head: my feelings are valid and that through Christ I will be okay because through Christ anything is possible!  

Now, didn’t that feel great? Your feelings are valid no matter the situation, but it doesn’t mean that it’s all about you. Like I said earlier compassion is about showing that you care about someone. Galatians 6:2 (NIV) says;” Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfill the way of Christ.”  Did you catch that? Carry each other’s burdens! While there are times when it’s best to take care of yourself life is about finding adventure and caring about others no matter what happens.  

In closing, I hope you’ve found this post encouraging but I also hope you’ve learned a lot! I just want to challenge you to live life to the fullest and find at least one person that you haven’t talked to in a while and just see how they’re doing and really get to know where he or she is at! As always, if you ever need to talk, have any prayer requests, questions or ideas about what I should talk about next. Feel free to email me at Homeschoolgradblog@gmail.com, message me on faithful, or comment below. Thanks for reading!