In their shoes

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- It’s an often-used saying: Don’t judge someone until you are willing to walk a mile in his shoes. However, its power never diminishes.

The biblical term for seeking to feel or connect with another is “compassion.” The original (Greek) word means “to suffer with.” Better said, when someone suffers, we enter into their sufferings to both connect with them and to give them comfort.

Compassion, also called “empathy,” often motivates us to act on behalf of those who are hurting or are in need. This is a common motivation of Jesus in the Gospels. For instance, we find Jesus moved with compassion for those who are weeping (Luke 7:13), those who are hungry (Matthew 15:32) and those who are sick (Matthew 14:14), among a host of other issues. This compassion or ability to “suffer with” is also what people of faith are called to share. In fact, losing sight of compassion causes us to disconnect from the deepest needs of others and the very purposes of God in the world.

The mission of God seems to hinge upon compassion. Every individual or organization that seeks to do good simply because they seek to relieve the suffering of others moves the compassionate mission of God forward.

Another thing about compassion and walking in the shoes of others is that it is not bound by one’s nation or culture. True compassion transcends those borders. When someone from another race, age group or nation suffers, those who choose to walk in the compassionate ways of God also suffer with them in some way. The hope for the world is that enough of us are so impacted by the compassion God displays in Christ and others that we do what we can, regardless of the obstacles in the way, to relieve the suffering of all.

It’s a big task, but it begins the moment we choose to walk in the shoes of another.