A day late and a dollar short. I’ve been struggling with trying to get my life together recently. It feels like I’m running faster than my legs will allow and still falling short. But I realize that there will never be a perfect time to spend on the worthwhile things, so we just have to make the time.
It’s now around lunch time on Friday, and as usual, the hunger pangs hit around this time. It’s a good time to think about the world around us. This week (and last week), I’ve been pondering compassion. It seems like it should be easy or a no-brainer but compassion and empathy are hard. I was reminded of this as I saw an SCMP article about slavery in fisheries.
My mind went to : what can I do about it? Which without prompting led my mind to want to file it away and not care about this specifically.
Compassion is hard because there is so much to care about. The Bible talks about the widow and orphan but honestly that is just the tip of the iceberg. The stranger, the poor, the destitute, the homeless, the list of needs are never ending. Faced with a world full of need, it is easy to wall ourselves off, to ignore the alarms and sirens going off in this world, and just focus on our own little patch.
Whats wrong with mowing my lawn?
I live out in the ‘burbs. One of the features of my neighborhood are the manicured lawns and the perfectly proportioned shrubbery. I often feel like the black sheep of the neighborhood. I strive for a nice lawn but mine is forever just less green and lush than my neighbors. So I spend ever more time on my lawn.
There is nothing inherently wrong with wanting your lawn to be nice, in pursuing excellence even in the care of the things you have been entrusted. But to the extent we use these daily needs and struggles as a way to shut off the pain of the world, it becomes escapism. Burying our heads in the metaphorical sand.
Rearrange deck chairs or try to launch the liferafts?
It’s not easy to launch the liferafts. It seems an impossible task. But when each of the passengers put their hand to the work, it is possible. In an emergency, it is not only the responsibility of the staff to take action. Passengers need to be active. One of us alone, can’t achieve a whole lot (typically!). But a few of us together? We could change the world.
The point is, find a cohort. Start a group, you can use meetup, nextdoor or any raft of different platforms to find folks with an interest to address a need locally. Find a food pantry and volunteer. Each of these are liferafts, and you can put your hand to good work.
We are trying to start a little bible study in our neighborhood, just a way for folks to connect and gather to discuss how we can have an impact on our little corner of the world, and pray for those we can’t directly reach. It’s not much but we look forward to meeting with like minded people.
Exhaustion and Refreshing
In the doing, also dont forget the need for refreshing. One of the things about caring is that it takes energy, it is not free! So don’t run until you are running on empty. The concept of sabbath rest, taking time to refresh yourself is critical. This is especially true for those in service, the volunteers and the leaders.
Empathy is like a battery, it needs recharging. You expend empathy as you do good work. Then you need a time of refreshing, through rest and connection to faith to restore that store of empathy before you can be of use again. We always ask how people like caregivers (e.g. doctors and nurses, parents) who are tasked with the safety of others can turn cruel to the very ones they are tasked with protecting. The answer I think lies in the exhaustion of empathy.
So remember to take a break also, refresh yourself over the weekend, and get ready to go again. Then get out there and make a difference!
Prayer
Lord, I pray that You refresh us in compassion today. Remind us of Your love for us, and how we ought to love others. Break our heart for what breaks Yours, Lord.
Help us to be a blessing to our neighborhoods, our communities and all those around us. Build us up to build up others, Lord.