Recovering from Ruins – Part 3

Kindness and Compassion

In part two, we learned that one of the steps we can take towards recovering from ruins is to seek the face of God. In 1 Samuel 30, we saw how David sought the face of God by relying on the office of the Priest. Under the new covenant, we can rely on the Holy Spirit to teach and guide us to seek God’s face. After David sought the face of God, God gave him a message of assurance, hope, and victory.

David gathered his men to begin the hunt and pursuit of the Amalekites. On their way, David’s men found an Egyptian who was weak and hadn’t eaten for three days. They gave the Egyptian food to eat and revived him. David and his men were in the mood for warfare because something devastating had just happened to them, but they were still kind and compassionate to this Egyptian. If they simply ignored this man, it could have been “justified” because of the task at hand but they did otherwise. There is a lesson for us to learn here, a lesson of kindness and compassion. 

Destruction and loss could be devastating, and sometimes it can make us feel alone in our troubles, therefore we may not see the need to be deliberately kind and compassionate to others going through their own challenges. We may sometimes be knowingly or unknowingly mean, rude, bitter and condescending to others because we think we are being hit the hardest in life. Their pain notwithstanding, David and his men cared for this man. They gave him attention, care, and were interested in his needs.

While thinking through this act of kindness by David, I recalled when an acquaintance called me on the phone to talk about his challenge. I did not have a close relationship with him and I wondered why he wanted to talk to me about his troubles. I felt irritated because he thought I could help him when I equally needed help. Initially, as he spoke, I was impatient but I decided to keep calm and listen to what he had to say. He spoke at length and I kept quiet throughout. I realised he was truly hurt and needed an outlet to vent his frustration. After he finished speaking, I said “I am sorry you had to go through all that” and he replied, “No one has listened to me, thank you for lending me your ear”. After the phone call, I felt guilt and shame on the inside. If only he knew I had dismissed him in my heart barely before he started speaking, he probably wouldn’t have thanked me. I was just like every other person that did not give him a lending ear, maybe I was a bit more patient but fundamentally, I was selfish. I wasn’t happy about certain things in my own life and I believed I was not in the best position to listen to his challenge. All he needed from me was a little bit of my time and a listening ear, it wasn’t too much to ask from me. I repented of this and the Holy Spirit reminded me that if we are true followers of Christ, we should be compassionate to our neighbour (at all times) because compassion is the nature of Christ.

If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person? -  1 John 3:17, NLT

When we are kind and compassionate, we recognize the distress of others and have a desire to lighten or alleviate it. When we are kind, we are confirming that the love of God dwells in us. Being compassionate should not be a feeling, it should be our nature. Regardless of our pain, we can be instrumental in helping others recover from theirs. We shouldn’t be fixated on our problems so much that we can’t see the problems of others. In the climate of today’s world, many are crying out for justice and equity. It’s important that we don’t trivialise their pain, ignore their cry for justice, or be silent just because we don’t share the same burden with them. We can express kindness by lending our voices to their plight, by asking questions and practically exploring avenues to contribute towards making our society a better place for them. 

After the Egyptian had eaten and was revived, David wanted to know more about him.  David asked; “Who do you belong to? Where do you come from?” (1 Samuel 30:13). It turned out that this Egyptian was a slave of the Amalekites who had just destroyed Ziklag. Subsequently, the Egyptian was willing to lead David to where he could find the Amalekites provided David would spare his life. David got valuable intel from the Egyptian which was useful for his mission. The extra time David and his men spent being kind and compassionate to this weak man accelerated the speed of their recovery. They were able to locate the camp of the Amalekites much faster and easier. God blessed the kindness of David.

We are called to take care of the downtrodden and the weak amongst us. No matter how much pain we bear, we still have the grace to help alleviate the pain of others. Share on X

Could the reason we sometimes wallow in defeat for long be that we have closed our hearts to people we should have blessed with our kindness and compassion? Are you ignoring someone that needs your help because you are buried in the rubble of your ruins? Are you watching them drown when you can help? Are you busy sulking about your problems to the point that you have developed a habit of being self-serving and dismissive of others? Do you walk over people who are not from your race, ethnicity, and social class simply because it doesn’t appear they can offer you anything?

Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor will also cry out and not be answered 
- proverbs 21:13, NIV

Christian living is a life of sacrifice, a life that puts the needs of others before ours. We are called to take care of the downtrodden and the weak amongst us. No matter how much pain we bear, we still have the grace to help alleviate the pain of others. As you help others recover from their ruins and as you help others put together the puzzles of their life, God will reward you and send help to your pain points. Let us strive to maintain a character of kindness and compassion during every season of our lives. 

Follow up Part 4 of this topic.