The story of the Good Samaritan challenges Christians to be uncommonly compassionate toward others.  That’s why I used it in Sunday’s message. Then the next day I read about the following experiment that blew my mind!

A research team asked a group of Princeton Seminary students, individually, to prepare a short talk on religious subjects (including some to speak on the “Good Samaritan”), and then walk to a nearby building to present it. In some cases, the researcher would look at his watch and tell the student, “Oh you’re late. They were expecting you a few minutes ago.” In other cases, the researcher would say, “It will be a few minutes before they’re ready for you, but you might as well head over now.”

What the students didn’t anticipate was that on the way to present, each one would encounter a man slumped down in an alley, head down, eyes closed, coughing and groaning. Surely, a student who had just read about, and was ready to discuss the Good Samaritan would be more likely to show compassion, right? Well the research actually concluded that preparing the talk on the parable did not significantly increase helping behavior. In fact some literally stepped over the victim on their way to give the talk!

The only thing that really mattered was whether the student was in a rush. Of the group that was, 10 percent stopped to help. Of the group who knew they had a few minutes to spare, 63 percent stopped… The words “Oh, you’re late” had the effect of making someone who was ordinarily compassionate into someone who was indifferent to suffering (Malcolm Gladwell, The Tipping Point, p 165).

That is so convicting! Just hearing about the Good Samaritan, and in my case, preaching about it is no guarantee that I will be compassionate. You will never even start to achieve Uncommon Compassion until you slow down, and see the people around you.

When I was a kid, old Southern Bell used to run this commercial with a jingle that went, “Reach out, reach out and touch someone. Reach out, reach and just say hi.” There were some more words, but age has removed them from my mind and i am not sure I care enough to research the rest on the internet. The point of the ad was to get people to use their phones more, thus racking up more long distance charges, thus pumping more money into the phone company. Sure it was a money grabbing scheme, but there is some importantce to the the message in the jingle.

Reaching out to people is one of the defining characteristics of a child of God. But we are not just called to reach out to our friends and family. We are call to reach out to the widow, the orphan, the poor, the alien, and the list goes on and on. There are plenty of real people out there who would love some human touch. It is not up to the government, the social or education system, or the clergy to provide that. It is up to the Church. And when I say the Church, I mean you and me. It is up to us to “reach out and touch someone”.

This week, make one effort to show some compassion to a person in need. Let our actions be our testimony to the joy we have in Christ.

On the Journey with you,
Scott

When the service ends on Sundays we always remind people to go hang out in the Connection Café before we begin to pack up everything. We love volunteers to pitch in and help carry all the gear back to the storage unit, but there is something we love even more…taking time to get to know you.

Relationship always will take priority over packing up church, so we deliberately want volunteers to wait at least 15 minutes to talk with one another, meet visitors, and enjoy some refreshments together. I know that it is hard for some to wait before rolling up their sleeves, but remember, church is about reaching people. And we can’t really reach others when we’re not personally connected. So, grab another cup of coffee, take some time to introduce yourself to someone new.

Some may say, “What if I don’t know what to say.” Here’s a quick acronym to help. I.F., as in “What IF I don’t know what to say?” “I” stands for interests and “F” stands for family. Ask your new acquaintance about their I-interests or hobbies, and F-their family. That should be enough to get you started…and then if you hit it off, ask them to help carry some gear with you!

Sunday I will be speaking about Uncommon Compassion. Here’s something to chew on…who are we generally more compassionate toward, people we’re personally connected to, or those that we’re not?

Setting up a Jenga game on the platform Sunday made a great point about integrity. A Jenga tower is a lot like life. Just like the game, when all the pieces are neatly in place the whole thing stands strong. When the player starts shifting the pieces around recklessly, it can get dangerous.

Imagine that God’s plan for you looks like a solid Jenga tower. Think of how all the pieces fit together perfectly. God’s plan is ideal. It has structural integrity. It is secure.

Now imagine that you begin removing some pieces of His plan. Or perhaps you start adding some pieces off-center where God never intended to support the extra stress. Soon the foundation begins shifting, and the whole thing looks like a holey, twisted, leaning Tower of Pisa. Everyone can see that you’re headed for a fall.

At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus concluded His message with a challenge and an illustration just like that (Matthew 7:24-27). Essentially He said, if you hear the teaching of Jesus and don’t put it to work in your life, you are like a person whose home is built on a sandy foundation. At times, it doesn’t look too shabby, but when the wind blows, the rain pours, and the flood rises, it will eventually all come crashing down.

People commonly live their lives built according to their own plan rather than God’s. But who wants all the pressure of a balancing act, wondering when the whole thing will fall apart? That’s why Jesus calls us to UNCOMMON INTEGRITY.