Doing Justice and Loving Mercy: Compassion Ministries, Mentor's Guide, MG16

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D O I N G J U S T I C E A N D L O V I N G M E R C Y : C O M P A S S I O N M I N I S T R I E S

small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? [27] Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. [28] But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! Yes, the Scriptures are plain. Our God is generous, loving, impartial, a cheerful giver, and the root and impulse of all authentic Christian care is rooted in this recognition of God’s character. This is why the person who claims to know God and shuts his bowels of compassion up to the needy, or harbors hatred and cruelty for others neither knows him nor belongs to him (cf. 1 John 3.14ff.; 4.7-21). To have been touched by the hand of God is to become a hilarious giver, one who pours out their lives for others even as God poured out his life for us in the person of his Son, Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 8.9). So, what is the key to blessing and abundance from God? The answer is plain: become a cheerful giver . Cultivate each day the spirit of hospitality and generosity, living happily with an open hand and an open heart. This is the spirit of the Father in heaven, and the life of the Son as he poured out his life for us on the Cross. All we who claim intimacy with him ought to walk as he walked (cf. 1 John 2.6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked). Cheerful givers are the delight of the Father. Generosity is the warmest ray from the sun of God’s compassion. Are you shining today? After reciting and/or singing the Nicene Creed (located in the Appendix), pray the following prayer: O God, the refuge of the poor, the strength of those who toil, and the comforter of all who sorrow, we commend to your mercy the unfortunate and needy in whatever land they may be. You alone know the number and extent of their sufferings and trials. Look down, Father of mercies, at those unhappy families suffering from war and slaughter, from hunger and disease, and other severe trials. Spare them, O Lord, for it is truly a time for mercy.

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Nicene Creed and Prayer

~ Peter Canisius Ruth Connell, comp. A Book of Prayers . Oxford, England: Lion Publishing, 1988. p. 111