Words about the Word - Michael Atmar - MMPC
“The King of Compassion”
As I read through the Gospels, I am astonished by the love of Jesus for broken, needy people like me. In Mark 1:32-34, we read that after a long day of ministry, “they brought to Him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. And He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons.” Jesus must have been exhausted after such a full day. We might expect the next verse to tell us that He slept in and had a nice, big breakfast the following morning. However, Mark 1:35 tells us that “rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He departed and went out to a desolate place, and there He prayed.” This time with His Father was more refreshing to Jesus than any amount of sleep and more nourishing to Him than any meal. He loved to retreat from the busyness of the crowds to be with His Father. This was Jesus’ regular practice, as we read in Luke 5:16: “But He would withdraw to desolate places and pray.”
I would like to ask you, dear reader, this question: Does your morning routine look like Jesus’ morning routine? Do you love to meet with your Heavenly Father and be restored in His loving presence? If not, what is distracting you from this time with Him? As I reflect on my own rhythms and habits, the two biggest distractions for me are my television and my phone. If I am not careful, I will stay up too late watching sports games or highlights. The next morning, I wake up groggy and a little grumpy, and I have to rush through my “quiet time” with the Lord before my kids wake up and need my attention. I also have the constant distraction of my phone, which competes for my attention and pulls me away from focusing on reading my Bible and praying. Maybe you can relate. So, what I have started doing is putting my phone away in the evenings and not watching television before bed. I wind down at the end of the day by reading a good book and finishing with a short passage from the Bible. Then, I go to bed on time. This allows me to wake up early the next morning with more energy and excitement to meet with the Lord and spend time in His Word and in prayer before I do anything else (including looking at my phone). Would you take a moment to ask the Lord what practical changes you might need to make to your evening or morning routine to follow in His footsteps this year?
Let’s return our attention to Jesus. In Mark 1:40, after He had spent time with His Father, he was approached by a man with leprosy who begged Jesus to heal him, saying, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” In Mark 1:41, we read His response: “Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean.” Don’t you want to be filled with compassion for the people around you, like our Savior? It starts by remembering His compassion for you first thing in the morning. We need to meet with Him every day and remember His great mercy for us before we can extend His love and mercy to those around us. May we take time each day to rejoice in the love of Jesus our King for us—the One who suffered and died on the cross for our sins and rose again—so that we will overflow with compassion for those around us.
