Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK … Please take the time to take in a YouTube of Glen Campbell singing his hit song … Try A Little Kindness … poignantly singing of how we, who claim to follow Jesus’ way, should shine His light of compassion in this world which needs it so desperately.
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Highlight Verse[s]: Matthew 9:36 [NKJV] … 36 But when He [JESUS] saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.
… If we are to become like Jesus, we must reach out and help others when we see the need … as Jesus did!
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Highlight Passage [context]: Matthew 9:35-38 [NKJV]… USE THIS LINK …
… When Jesus saw a need, His compassion led Him to follow the Spirit’s lead and take action.
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Reference Passage : … Isaiah 53:6 [NKJV] … 6 All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord [a]has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
… We are all in need of the compassion/mercy shown by King Jesus to others when He walked this earth.
Reference Passage : … Luke 4:18-19 [NKJV] … 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, … to set at liberty those who are oppressed; … 19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”
… Quoting from Isaiah (61:1-2), Jesus proclaims His incarnate mission, one of compassion, as our Good Shepherd.
Reference Passage : … Luke 9:23 [NKJV] … 23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. …”
… Jesus calls all of us to follow His lead and to show CHRISTLIKE love, compassion, and mercy to others … whenever we can.
Reference Passage : … Galatians 6:1-2 [NKJV] … Brethren, if a man is [a]overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
… When we see someone overtaken by some sin or circumstances, we, who follow the ways of Christ, MUST reach out as He would to help those in need.
My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Bill Crowder, used an historical figure, Anne Frank in WW2, to show the kind of Christlike compassion we all should show others as we do all we can to emulate our Lord. The ODB author writes … Anne Frank is well known for her diary describing her family’s years of hiding during World War II. When she was later imprisoned in a Nazi death camp, those with her said “her tears [for them] never ran dry,” making her “a blessed presence for all who knew her.” Because of this, scholar Kenneth Bailey concluded that Anne never displayed “compassion fatigue.”
Compassion fatigue can be one of the results of living in a badly broken world. The sheer volume of human suffering can numb even the best intentioned among us.
We may not have the degree of empathy and strength to do what Anne Frank did in WW2; but we are called by Jesus to deny our basic, selfish, nature and reach out, when we can, to emulate the compassion which Jesus, as our Good Shepherd, showed to others when He lived and ministered to others during His time on earth (see Scriptures above).
So, why don’t we just do what Glen Campbell sings; and today, let’s just “Try a Little Kindness!” and share the love of Christ with someone when we see the need.
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My THANKFULNESS: … Oh Abba Father, … thank You, Lord, … for being my model of compassion.
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My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, … King Jesus, … I pray, Lord, that we are willing to reach out and be like You when we see someone needing Your love/mercy today. … Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled “Our Daily Bread,” distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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