Compassion Helps Us Be Present With Each Other
For the month of July, children and families from our church and in the Decatur community will be participating in a take-home VBS called “Compassion Camp.” Families will spend five sessions learning about the different ways compassion helps us and the world around us.
Each week from now until July 29, our devotion and daily prayer will focus on the theme from that week’s VBS session. Many of the stories that you will hear will be familiar, but I want to encourage you to hear them with new ears and see them with new eyes- and through the lens of compassion.
Scripture
Ruth 1 (Illustrated Ministry Paraphrase)
In Judah, there once was a man named Elimelech who worried about how his family would survive the famine. He took his wife, Naomi, and their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, to the country of Moab. They settled there and made a life among the people. Soon, their sons married two women named Orpah and Ruth. Sadly, Naomi’s husband passed away, and then, even her two sons died, too.
Naomi missed her family and wanted to go back home, so she began the long journey back to Judah. As was the custom for daughters by law, Orpah and Ruth followed her. But Naomi insisted they stay home in Moab: “Go back to your family. May the Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with your husbands and me. Peace be with you.”
Naomi hugged them goodbye as they all cried together.
But Orpah and Ruth were determined to follow her. Naomi tried to persuade them “I don’t want to ruin your chance at marriage and having your own family. If you stay with me, you will have nothing because I cannot give you anything. I have lost everything and my heart is so bitter.” They all cried together once again. Orpah decided to go back, but Ruth clung to Naomi even more.
Naomi said to Ruth: “Don’t stay with me! Go back with Orpah.” But Ruth opened up to her: “Don’t make me leave you. Where you go, I will go; where you make our home I will make my home. Your people will be my people, your God my God, and where you die and are buried, I will be buried there, too. I will be your family.”
When Naomi saw that she couldn’t change Ruth’s mind, her heart softened. She accepted Ruth, and they traveled back to Judah together. Ruth lovingly took care of Naomi, and she became like a daughter to her.
Reflection
The book of Ruth has always been one of my favorite books. When my family moved from NC to VA when I was in high school, my best friend wrote me a card with the verse “Where you go, I will go…” on it. In several weddings I have officiated, this is a scripture passage that is often used by the couple.
But like all the other lessons of our VBS curriculum, we are looking at this passage through the lens of compassion. Our theme for this week is “Compassion helps us be present with each other.” Sometimes we don’t know how to help the people around us, or what direction to take. But if we are present to the experiences of those around us, we can trust God’s Spirit to show us the compassionate way to be present with someone else.
We have defined compassion as “I see your hurt; I feel your hurt with you; and I do what I can to lessen your hurt.” These three women did each of these things at various points in their story together and as they parted ways.
They relied on one another when all of their worlds turned upside down, and they were able to be with one another in their collective hurt. And together, they each tried to ease the hurt of each other: Naomi by encouraging the younger women to return to their families; Ruth by not letting Naomi journey back to Judah on her own; and Naomi by giving Orpah permission to return to her family.
Response
So far, we have reflected on how compassion helps us see and welcome, be brave, and love ourselves.
Looking at this sequence of themes, how do you think these previous themes can help us as we are present with each other? Do you think we need to be intentional about these first three themes before we can truly be present with each other?
Ruth, Orpah and Naomi were with each other in their hurt. When have you been with someone in their hurt? When has someone been with you?
Reverend Kristen Koger has served as the Pastor for Children and Families at FBC Decatur since June 2017. Kristen loves working with the youngest of God’s family as she helps them realize that they have some of the most important gifts to offer the family of God. In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her dog Dietrich “Bonehoeffer,” cooking, knitting, and playing board games.