Have full sympathy with one another. Do not give your mind to high things, but let humble ways content you. Do not be wise in your own conceits. Romans 12:16
“There is poetry and there is beauty in real sympathy; but there is more — there is action. The noblest and most powerful form of sympathy is not merely the responsive tear, the echoed sigh, the answering look; it is the embodiment of the sentiment in actual help.”
Octavius Winslow in Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers, compiled by Josiah Hotchkiss Gilbert (New York: Wilbur B. Ketcham, 1895) 574.
The greatest form of sympathy and compassion is actual help. I find that when I serve others with a listening ear and a helping hand it provides exactly what they need. What do you think?
This is my prayer for this week of service in Guatemala. That God will help me show real sympathy and not offer what I think anyone needs, but listen, discern, and then offer actual help.
Make it so Lord Jesus for all of us!