September 21st, 2026
Sunday’s Recap: Compassion
Guiding Scripture: Luke 10:25–37, Mark 6:30–44
Yesterday, we started a new worship series where we began to explore what it means to be changemakers. This series is inspired by the Changemakers Initiative, which seeks to “help everyday people of faith and congregations turn what they care about into real change.”
Changemaking always begins with compassion. We are moved to make change because we are moved by the pain and suffering we see in the world around us. We feel compassion and realize that we must do something about it. This does not mean we must or can carry the weight of all suffering on our shoulders. But it does invite us to notice where God is calling us to notice the suffering around us. Whose suffering do you see? What can we do about it?
In the parable of the Good Samaritan, the Samaritan man notices suffering on the side of the road, is filled with compassion, and acts out of that compassion. Jesus teaches us through this story what it means to be a neighbor. The question of “Who is my neighbor?” becomes far less important when we simply are neighbors who act out of compassion.
Jesus also leads by example through the feeding of the 5,000. This story takes place shortly after John the Baptist’s execution. Jesus was grieving his friend. He tries to find some privacy, peace, and space to grieve. Yet he is surrounded by a crowd of 5,000 people. Jesus is filled with compassion despite feeling emotionally depleted. Out of that compassion, the miracle of multiplying resources begins. Here, Jesus teaches us that even when we feel drained and resources are lacking, God fills us with a compassion that is always in abundance. When we come together as compassionate people, we are often surprised by just how far our resources can go to make positive change.
This worship series also kicks off our time of stewardship, where we look at the resources we have (money, time, energy, leadership), strategize how we can use them abundantly, and imagine what could happen when we pull our resources together. We may just find that we have abundance even when resources seem scarce.
May this stewardship season not focus on what we lack, but on the abundance we already have. Compassion is abundant. Let’s make positive change together.
Monday’s Call
This week, our invitation is to pay attention to where God is guiding us to notice the suffering around us. What problems speak to you? What needs to be changed to help? How can we, as a church, help you? Our compassion comes from our connection with God. Even when we feel limited, we are able to be compassionate people throughout every moment.
As you move through your week, consider trying one or more of these spiritual practices:
- 💗 Start with Compassion: As you go through your week, notice the areas of the world where God is leading you to notice suffering. The goal is not to feel all the world’s pain. Rather, focus on what speaks loudest to your heart. Begin to ponder: What kind of change would improve these circumstances? Pray for God to guide you through this discernment.
- 🍂 Make a Small Change: Changemaking does not always have to be a large project, mission, or movement. It can begin with the small impacts we have on other people’s lives. How can you make a small change in someone’s life? Here are a few suggestions:
- Check in on someone you know has been having a difficult week.
- Thank someone whose work often goes unnoticed.
- Share something you have with someone who needs it.
- Send a note, text, or card to someone who could use some encouragement.
- Instead of assuming what someone needs, ask, “What would be helpful right now?”
- ✍️ Reflect and Journal (By Rev. Kathi McShane):
- Can you think of a time when you have been distracted from your own suffering by compassion for another? Reflect on the well of compassion Jesus must have drawn on as he faced a hungry crowd.
- Whose suffering matters? In this country? In the world? To our church?
- Do you see a distinction between empathy and compassion? How might drawing on the compassion of God widen the reach of your connection with others, beyond your own empathy?
- ⭐Bonus: Explore the Changemaker’s Initiative website to learn more about the movement that inspired this series: https://thechangemakerinitiative.org/
May we draw upon God’s compassion to make positive change.
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