“Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him.”
Luke 10:33
One day, a young boy named Mark was walking home from school when he noticed that a boy ahead of him had tripped and dropped all of the books he was carrying; along with two sweaters, a baseball bat, a glove, and a small tape recorder. Mark felt a sense of compassion and knelt down to help the boy pick up all the scattered articles. Since they were going the same way, he helped the boy carry part of the burden. As they walked, he discovered the boy’s name was Bill, that he loved video games, baseball, history, and that he was having lots of trouble with his other subjects in school.They arrived at Bill’s home first, and Mark was invited in for some milk and cookies, and watch some cartoons on television. The afternoon passed pleasantly with a few laughs and some shared kid talk; then Mark went home. They continued to see each other around school, had lunch together every once in a while, then both graduated from middle school. They ended up in the same high school where they had brief contacts throughout the years. Finally, the long-awaited senior year came, and three weeks before graduation, Bill asked Mark if they could talk? Bill reminded Mark of the day years ago when they had first met. “Did you ever wonder why I was carrying so many things home that day?” asked Bill. “You see, I cleaned out my locker because I didn’t want to leave a mess for anyone else. I had stored away some of my mother’s sleeping pills, and I was going home to commit suicide.”Bill told Mark that he realized that he didn’t want to die after spending time together talking and laughing and watching TV that day. “I would have missed that time with you and many other good times in my life that followed. What I am trying to say, Mark, is that you did a lot more when you picked up those books that day. You showed me compassion, and by doing so, you saved my life.”In our world today there are hurting people all around us—physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. “Stop, Look and See”, then show compassion not just sympathy.My friends, listen closely . . .
- Sympathy looks in and says, "I'm sorry.” Compassion goes in and says, "I’m with you.“
- Sympathy looks in and says, "I would like to help." Compassion goes in and says, "I am here to help."
- Sympathy looks in and says, "I wish I could carry your burden." Compassion goes in and says, "Place your burden on me."
We cannot always do great things on this earth—however we can do small things with great love and compassion.Happy New Year!Be Worth Being,KevinSUBSCRIBE TO "OVER THE HUMP" DEVOTIONALKevin Burrell has worked in professional baseball as both a player and MLB scout for the past 40 years, and currently serves as an area scouting supervisor. Kevin was drafted in the 1st round of the 1981 free agent amateur draft (25th selection overall), and played ten years of professional baseball with four different organizations. He and his wife, Valerie, live in Sharpsburg, Ga.
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