Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Moving to Week 8 of 30, we will look at compassion.

Compassion – Suffering with another person in a trial of burden.

Compassion motivates people to go out of their way to help the physical, mental, or emotional pains of another and themselves.

Compassion is often regarded as having sensitivity, which is an emotional aspect to suffering. As it applies to oneness in the relationships with our family.

Compassion or the lack thereof, plays a vital part to achieving oneness. Life is going to bring us concerns and challenges.

We will encounter some rough spots. We may even do something that is totally illogical. It is the sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others that will help us to be able to heal in a healthy way.

Compassion is also vital to achieving true forgiveness. When someone does something to us, especially if it is done intentionally, to truly forgive them, we must come from a place of compassion.

Why should we show compassion to someone that obviously was looking to hurt us? The place of compassion is berthed out of the place of peace. We have compassion for these people because we understand that hurt people hurt people, and they must be hurting very badly to want to intentionally hurt us. Having a spirit of compassion helps us to forgive them.

How many families are growing in dysfunction because they refuse to show compassion? How many relationships never get mended because we refuse to look at why another person is doing what they’re doing?

Compassion also gives way to sustained support. Having compassion for someone else in a hurting situation triggers us to become co-suffers with that person.

All of us have experienced moments of lowness. Having a great support group is not about people feeling sorry for us, but having compassion towards us.

When we become co-suffers with people, our compassion will travel. It will become “come passion.”

The difference between “compassion” and “come passion” is the “E.” The “E” that causes compassion to travel as “come passion” is empathy, the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.

Jesus looked upon the multitude and was “moved” with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Jesus went out. He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick.

When our loved ones are hurting, are we moved to move? Or do we move to remove?

Rev. Demetrius Moffett is Senior Pastor of Orange Church of God-Embassy of Grace, 1911 North 16th Street in Orange.