Teach Me Jesus--Compassion

How do we teach compassion in a culture plagued with materialism?  When our society focuses success on how much one can obtain, I believe one of our greatest challenges is to show our kids how to build treasures in heaven.  In addition, I hope that my children will not only feel compassion, but live compassion, showing the love of Christ through their actions.

I think that in order for this to become a part of our lifestyle we need prayer, exposure, and action.

1.  First, we pray for our hearts and our children's hearts to be moved by the Spirit to have love reflecting the love of Christ.  This is not possible without God's working in our hearts.  We are sinful and selfish, but God can change our hearts.

Also, we can pray for those in need in our church, community, nation, and world.  A great resource to
pray for the nations: Operation World: The Definitive Prayer Guide to Every Nation, is a great guide of prayer, giving information about each nation and prayer lists to follow.  There is also a volume for children.  Check out the Operation World website for ideas and resources on how to pray globally.

2.  We need to expose our family to cultures that are out of our comfort zone and different from our own.  One way to do that is through children's books and other books as they grow older.  Another way is to find ways for our children to have friendships with children of other races.  Also, we can visit friends who are in full time ministry, pray for them, and support them.

Also as we study God's Word, our family will be exposed to Christ's priority to love the poor.  I believe that as our children grow in knowledge of who Christ is, they will grow hearts of compassion for His people.

3.  Compassion shouldn't just be a feeling, but a verb to show.  To take action, we can serve in our community, we can bring meals to those with various needs, we can give resources often, and as the children grow older we can go on missions trips.  There are many other ways to show compassion, from opening our home, to adopting we hope to be open to wherever God will lead us as our family grows.


Additional Resources:
More Than Equals: Racial Healing for the Sake of the Gospel
The Mission Minded Family: Releasing Your Family to God's Destiny
Let the Nations Be Glad!: The Supremacy of God in Missions (Spire Books)
Don't Waste Your Life
Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God


What does your parenting philosophy look like?  Consider joining us every Thursday as we explore what it means to raise our children to know Christ.