Devotional Thoughts for Today
“Empathy, not Judging”
Jeremiah 14:19-21 (ESV)
“Have you utterly rejected Judah? Does your soul loathe Zion? Why have you struck us down so that there is no healing for us? We looked for peace, but no good came; for a time of healing, but behold, terror. We acknowledge our wickedness, O Lord, and the iniquity of our fathers, for we have sinned against you. Do not spurn us, for your name’s sake; do not dishonor your glorious throne; remember and do not break your covenant with us.”
In my teenage years, I had a habit of saying “I hate” this or that. “I hate mayonnaise.” “Ugh, I hate this song.” Even if it only irked me a little bit, I would express that I hated it in front of others. Seeing this, my mom told me something in passing that stuck with me. She told that there was never really a good enough reason to say “I hate…” out loud. Her words made me re-assess how I speak. Even if I did hate something, I could choose to stay silent or say something more thoughtful and constructive, instead.
In today’s passage, we see the prophet Jeremiah in an environment where there is really nothing good to say. The Israelites have broken their covenant with God yet again, by going after Canaanite idols. The Israelites knew their covenant stipulations and that disobedience would result in sword and famine falling upon them. Jeremiah was sent to remind them of it, again and again. However, when false prophets spring up among them, promising that sword and famine would not fall upon them, some Israelites choose to believe false prophets instead. At this point, if you were in Jeremiah’s shoes, what would you have said? What words would you have chosen to say about the Israelites? Would it start with, “I hate . . .”?
In v. 17, we read that God gives Jeremiah a word to give Israel. Jeremiah is sent to mourn over their rebellion and the impending famine with “tears night and day.” Neither God nor Jeremiah ignores the grim situation, but Jeremiah prays over them, asking God “not to spurn [Israel], for [His] name’s sake” and have grace on them. In response to this situation out of his control, Jeremiah chooses to stand in the gap for His people and be an intercessor. Instead of judging, he empathized with and mourned for them.
In today’s world, we tend to be surrounded with groups judging each other and describing why they do so. Reality is, every situation is complex and there will always be multiple perspectives. Instead of discerning, judging or discussing, we should also be led to empathize and intercede for those we agree and disagree with. Like Jeremiah, let’s discover where God has uniquely placed us to be effective intercessors, and thoughtful and constructive friends.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us the power of words to not only speak truth and bless others, but intercede for all in prayer. Would You raise up a generation of powerful intercessors. In complex situations, give us the wisdom and maturity to speak in a way that builds up, not breaks down. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Bible Reading for Today: Ezekiel 28
Lunch Break Study
Read James 5:13-16: “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.”
Questions to Consider
- What are some circumstances we are instructed to pray?
- How can we become intercessors with great power?
- How have you been defining “powerful intercession”? Did your definition change in response to this passage?
Notes
- In every mood, whether we are suffering or cheerful. In every circumstance, whether we are sick or struggling in sin. In particular, we can confess our sins and pray with each other in order in our communities, to be forgiven and healed
- “The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” In Christ Jesus, we are righteous people and all believers can become effective intercessors.
- Personal reflection.
Evening Reflection
We tend to be quick to think and speak, but slow to empathize and pray. Are there any areas of your life you felt called to pray over? Any ministries you serve in but felt called to pray more over? Let’s do so today because God is listening to our prayers!
In a 2015 Ted Talk called “A Simple Way to Break a Bad Habit,” psychiatrist Judson Brewer talks about the relationship between mindfulness and habit. Research shows that a habit is formed when a specific behavior makes us feel good and so our brains remember it. A habit, such as snacking or smoking, is reinforced when our brains realize we are feeling bad, so we use the behavior to feel good again. Think about the way we flip open our laptops as soon as we get home or eat junk food when we’re stressed. It isn’t surprising that research supports that we aren’t very mindful or aware of what we do, better yet, why we do them.
Last November, I ran a half-marathon for the first (and probably last) time in my life. For training, I ran at least three times a week for about two months; so by the time the race came around, I felt confident enough—even excited. I’m an idealist at heart, so although my practice runs were never fun, I thought the actual race would be exhilarating. After running the 13.2 miles, I can safely say that long-distance runs are physically strenuous every time you do them.
In my Introductory Greek class, we learned the Greek alphabet during the first week of school. I remember quickly memorizing all 24 letters and then moving on to homework that was actually due. When exam time came along, our T.A. told us to make sure we knew the Greek alphabet, and I happily checked it off the list of things I didn’t need to study because I already knew them. We got our exams and, lo and behold, the last question wrote, “Spell out the entire Greek alphabet.” To no one’s surprise, I could not answer the question and lost out on ten very much needed extra credit points. I left the exam recalling my T.A.’s words and wondering why I just didn’t spend five extra minutes brushing up on the alphabet…
The other day I was at a playground with my five-year old twins. They had just received some bubbles as a goodbye present from their preschool teacher and were eager to take these puppies out for a ride. As they started blowing bubbles, a crowd of children began to gather around them hoping to pop some bubbles. (For the life of me, I don’t understand why children have this rabid love for bubbles.) Anyway, one of these kids was a girl who was probably about three years old and, not being satisfied with merely popping bubbles, she wanted to be the bubble maker—so she tried to take the bubble wand from my daughter’s hand. Now, this is where parenting gets kind of awkward, because my daughter Abbie is just looking at this girl like, “Back up, I’m bigger than you. You can’t have my bubbles, and if my dad weren’t right there, I’d hammer you.” Meanwhile, this other girl is kind of throwing a fit, and her dad seemed to not really know how to handle her when she gets this way. So I suggest, “Abbie, maybe you can let that little girl have a turn. Let her blow bubbles two times.” I kid you not, Abbie looks at me like I sold her to a band of gypsies or something; I could tell she was thinking something like, “Dad, I thought I was your daughter! Why are you being so nice to her?” For whatever reason my kindness to this other girl, felt like meanness to my daughter.
Our church family lost a dear sister a couple of weeks ago. Massiel was 26 years old and had been coming to Remnant for several years before I got here. To my understanding, she had eaten a sandwich which contained a nut she was allergic to. While in the ambulance, she went into cardiac arrest and lost oxygen to her brain for several minutes. For over a week, Massiel was in a coma, until doctors determined her brain had sustained too much damage to sustain life. And so with family and loved ones by her side, support was withdrawn, and we said goodbye to our sister until that joyous day when we will meet her again in our Father’s house.
I generally don’t believe in the idea of “victimless crimes.” Wikipedia defines victimless crime as “an illegal act that typically either directly involves only the perpetrator, or occurs between consenting adults; because it is consensual in nature, there is arguably no true victim.” Examples typically include drug abuse, gambling, and prostitution. Yet, anyone who’s had a loved one involved in a drug, gambling, or sex addiction can tell you how damaging they are for the individuals directly involved. We also know that the further you go up the “food chains” of these crime syndicates, we start talking about truly sinister actions like human trafficking and murder.
I think I count as a relatively big sports fan. Unfortunately, my favorite team (da Bears) have been an absolute dumpster fire for the past five seasons. Since the 2012 season, we’re now on our fourth head coach (meaning, we’ve fired three in six years!). Now, while I generally hate seeing people lose their jobs, I knew it was time for the last two to go. In sports, you realize a coach has “lost the team” when the players stop playing hard or give effort: In football, players will miss tackles or won’t get up quickly after getting blocked; in basketball, defenders will get beat off the dribble or give up uncontested layups and jumpers; in baseball, base runners won’t run out ground balls, etc. In other words, the players just go through the motions of competing without actually putting their hearts into it.
When it comes to evangelism, there tends to be two approaches. One is the direct method, where you just ask anyone, “Do you know Jesus?” In its most extreme form, you’ll see street preachers telling passersby that they are doomed to an eternity of torture in hell. Perhaps in reaction to the aggression and negative perception of the stereotypical street preacher, the other method of “friendship evangelism” has gotten more and more popular and is how most Christians choose to “evangelize” today. Perhaps you’re familiar with this method; you basically try your best to be the most loving, most patient, most honest person on the planet (i.e. you try to be like Jesus), then you wait and pray for that eventual day when your friend will ask you why you’re so “different” from everybody else. Of course, your answer will be “Jesus,” which will open the door to a wonderful conversation about faith and the Gospel.
are times when my children get hurt, and instead of feeling sorrow, I get angry. A classic example of something that happens almost weekly in my home is when my five-year old starts jumping on the arms of our couch. Like a little monkey, he goes from one couch to another, having a grand old time, until boom! He slips and bangs his head against the floor. So he comes to me, and he’s crying, rubbing his head, seeking comfort. Now instead of giving him a hug or rubbing his dome, what do I do? Well, if I’m in an annoyed mood, I might give him a Korean timeout (one where he sits on his knees holding his arms in the air). It’s kind of cute seeing little kids try to do the Korean timeout.