October 9

Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-15; Mark 6:45-52; Matthew 14:22-33; John 6:16-21; Mark 6:53-56; Matthew 14:34-36

What motivates you to serve? What compels you to love people, especially those who are difficult? Our motivation should be the same as Jesus which is compassion. Jesus saw the crowds and seeing their need for food fed them. Yet what caused him to respond this way was a heart of compassion. The word for compassion in the Old Testament (rechem) literally means womb feelings─the feeling a mother has for her unborn child. We are to envision Jesus looking upon the crowds of people as their creator and responding with love. It is not a love based on their response to him, but an unconditional love a parent has for their child.

This is the way Jesus viewed the throng of people he fed and also the way he views us. This type of compassion should also be shared with others. If you do not feel compelled to love people well, ask God to fill you with compassion that mobilizes you to action.

Father God, thank you that you are a compassionate God. Thank you for loving me despite my sin and failures. Help me to have compassion for those you place in my life and respond to their needs. Amen. 

How can you cultivate a greater sense of compassion for others?

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