When an emergency happens, people are often quick to respond. Their hearts naturally go out to those in need, and they begin to think of how they can help. Some emergencies are dealt with quickly, but others, by their very nature, require persistent, ongoing effort. National or worldwide disasters, epidemics, entrenched hunger and poverty, prolonged conflict, even chronic illness, may demand continuous and patient attention in order to achieve resolution. So how can one keep from wearing down and experiencing what some have called "compassion fatigue"?
A good place to start is to elevate one's sense of compassion. Compassion actually has a spiritual source and is something more than the mixed human passion of love and sorrow. Another term for compassion is mercy, and true mercy is actually a divine attribute. The Psalmist spoke of this kind of mercy in the well-known and well-loved 23rd Psalm, where God is compared to the dedicated shepherd. That psalm ends with the assurance, "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life ..." The verb mildly translated as follow in that stanza can be translated to the more demanding verb pursue. Realizing that a divine animus is "pursuing" each of us with goodness and mercy has strengthened my compassionate efforts. The way I see it, divine Love actually pursues us with mercy; Love never lets up or wears out or gives up in its efforts. Seeing compassion as a relentless, caring attribute of God reveals that there is much more behind our desires than mere human effort.
Compassion is a healing response, and as with all healing, it is much more effective when it's seen as divine grace, rather than a factor of the human mind. Divine grace, or the divine influence in the heart and mind, is what lifts us up, preventing us from wearing down. Grace is actually God working through us. This is the message of the Christ, or the divine manifestation of God that appears on the human scene, and that Jesus so fully lived and embodied. Jesus was the most humble, yet strong, character the world has ever known. He realized that the healing works he performed were not merely a response of human compassion, but the manifestation of divine grace. He could say, "The Son can do nothing of himself," while at the same time realizing that through the divine influence, he could do whatever the Father does. See John 5:19.
