A
daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and
exhortation.
Tuesday,
May
18,
2021
A robin's
nest nestled against the wall and light on our back deck.
"A
Consideration Of Compassion"
Note:
Today we have a much longer Scripture selection and longer
message since we feel this needs to be addressed in our
time.
Message
summary: As those who follow Christ and the
teachings of the Bible we urge each reader to work hard
and be compassionate toward others. We pray that God
gives you discernment to distinguish that which is
helpful and that which is harmful compassion.
Listen to this message on your audio player.
Listen to this message on your audio player.
"Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience" (Colossians 3:12). In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who is idle and disruptive and does not live according to the teaching you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to offer ourselves as a model for you to imitate. For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: 'The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.' We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat" (2 Thessalonians 3:6-12). "Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever" (1 Timothy 5:8).
During
this season we enjoy walking through our yard and
looking for evidence of new life. Several weeks ago we
shared several photos of a robin who had built a nest
behind our utility barn on a shelf where we store
planters.
We
noticed another robin trying to build a nest on a
porch light outside over our deck. It was a pitiful
site as she would bring the straw material up but just
couldn't seem to get a nest started. It would fall
down before she was able to lock it together. This
happened day after day until we had quite a mess with
strands of straw strewn about all over the side of the
deck. Brooksyne could take it no longer and decided to
see if the robin would accept her help and she sort of
built a nest for the robin. Lo and behold the next day
the bird decided her nest was acceptable though built
with human hands. We have been watching over the nest
seen above with four eggs in it for over a week now!
It's only a few feet below our second floor bathroom
window so we get a great view for photos.
Frankly
I had questioned the wisdom of Brooksyne helping her
and wondered if that spot was just not destined to be
a nest but mother robin seems to be doing fine.
Several years ago we had a robin's nest in this very
spot and Ester took many photos of them.
That
got me thinking about the times helping is good and
the times helping, although seeming compassionate, is
not so good and is actually harmful. Let me
illustrate. Let's say I am there when the eggs begin
to hatch. From my vantage point the baby robins are
really struggling to get out of the egg and it would
seem so compassionate to help them. So I get a
pair of tweezers and speed up the process, releasing
them from the egg much quicker and freeing them of
their struggles. I feel real good about my kindness!
But
I recall learning in science class that you don't want
to do this. The struggle to break though the shell is
part of the design for a healthy hatchling. Although
my intentions may be compassionate they would actually
be harmful and destructive.
In
life there is helpful compassion and there is
destructive compassion.
Many
of you know that we work as chaplains in the workplace
serving a variety of companies here in Lancaster and
Lebanon Counties, PA. We drive throughout these
counties to visit various workplaces several times a
week. Everywhere we see "help wanted" signs.
But many people prefer not to work unless they can get
the kind of job they want or feel they deserve. So
many who went to college have an essentially worthless
degree but feel entitled to a good job. In many cases
government unemployment benefits are a critical
disincentive to work. Sadly this has become political,
something I don't believe either side would have
disagreed about just several years ago. Regardless of
what party you were in or where you were on the
political spectrum it was agreed that people need to
work!
One
of the consequences I see to this is how hard those
who still practice the fourth commandment "you shall
work", with overtime and increased stress levels. This
is particularly true in the trades. I am speaking to
people who are very weary as they carry an extra load.
I
am not an academic (see Acts 17:21 for my view of so
many academics) and I'm not a politician (see Mark 15:15 for how many
politicians operate). I am not a government bureaucrat
or specialist in one narrow field who so often seems
to be blinded to all the ramifications. I am just a
man in my mid-sixties who has been through the best
college of all, the school of hard knocks. Actually I
have a college degree but in real life it's not been
nearly as valuable as my hard knocks degree.
I
observe life where people actually live and talk to
many each week. I believe in hard work and
responsibility, taking care of yourself and your
family. I believe all work that contributes to society
is valuable, including and perhaps mostly "dirty
jobs". (Mike Rowe's term).
Is
there a time for helpful compassion?
Absolutely. Early in the church's history a natural
outflow of the new life in Christ was made visible
through believer's acts of compassion. In Acts 4:32-35
we see this as the early church cared for one another.
The people gave and "it was distributed to anyone
who had need". May God keep our hearts
compassionate toward those who have needs. "Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy
and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion,
kindness, humility, gentleness and patience"
(Colossians 3:12).
Is
there a time "compassion" can be harmful? In
our view indeed there is and it's common and
destructive. It can be practiced in the church but now
the biggest purveyor of phony, destructive compassion
is the government.
Our
second two daily texts address harmful "compassion".
It addresses those taking advantage of the system,
whether the church or government, which may be
motivated by compassion. We wonder if it was
addressing some who were taking advantage of the
compassion demonstrated in the first daily text. Some
were idle and disruptive and did not live
according to Paul's teaching and example, "we
worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that
we would not be a burden to any of you". Note
how often in our observation disruptiveness follows
idleness. Paul wrote, "Such people we command and urge in the
Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the
food they eat".
A
verse likely to be among the lesser memorized verses
in the Bible that states a very needed truth, "Anyone who does not
provide for their relatives, and especially for
their own household, has denied the faith and is
worse than an unbeliever" (1 Timothy 5:8).
That's a very serious indictment on idleness!
As
those who follow Christ and the teachings of the Bible
we urge each reader to work hard and be compassionate
toward others. We pray that God gives you discernment
to distinguish that which is helpful and that which is
harmful compassion.
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father
God, we thank
You for the tools You have given us to work with
- our intellect, our creativity, our eyes,
hands, and feet. You grant to us the opportunity
to put into practice the command that we are to
work with our hands so that we are not dependent
on others and so that we can provide for those
You have entrusted to our care. Give us
strength, know how, and the will to obey You in
this most important command so that we are not a
burden to others. Instead we seek to meet the
financial needs of our family while also
contributing to the community and ministry.
You've providentially placed us in. Through
Christ we can do all things. Amen.
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father
God, we thank
You for the tools You have given us to work with
- our intellect, our creativity, our eyes,
hands, and feet. You grant to us the opportunity
to put into practice the command that we are to
work with our hands so that we are not dependent
on others and so that we can provide for those
You have entrusted to our care. Give us
strength, know how, and the will to obey You in
this most important command so that we are not a
burden to others. Instead we seek to meet the
financial needs of our family while also
contributing to the community and ministry.
You've providentially placed us in. Through
Christ we can do all things. Amen.Today's
Suggested Music and Supplemental
Resources
"Battle
Belongs" Video Phil Wickham Another song we
have been blessed by. We dedicate this
to all our persecuted brothers and
sisters. We are studying persecution
in our Adult Bible Fellowship using
materials from the Voice Of The
Martyrs and desire to live with an
awareness of those suffering and be
faithfully praying for them.
Here's
a close-up of the robin eggs on our back deck
light. As of late Monday when we could still see
them they have not yet hatched and I have no plans
to help them!
The photos were taken six years ago when a
robin made a nest in this very same spot. It makes
for a good view out our window to see the progress
but it also make a mess on our siding and deck!
A couple of weeks later we had a great view looking down on the nest from our bathroom window only about seven feet away. We noticed three eggs as Mother Robin does her duty as God designed.
New life and hungry!
She had two (at least) little hungry mouths to feed. (The white diagonal across the top is my gutter as she has made her nest under my eaves.)
Time Lapse video of Robin Bird Eggs in Nest Hatching
to Fledging
(1 minute 19 seconds)
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Weber".Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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