Last night we had a bit of a storm in Odessa…I guess that is a bit of an understatement. Last night the heavens furiously hurled huge chunks of ice at the property and possessions of the residents of Odessa, TX. Okay, maybe that was a bit too dramatic. There was hail. And lots of it. Everything from marble sized to softball sized hail made it’s impact on our community last night . On our church property alone there were windows busted out and many of the cars parked in our parking lot lost windows and windshields in like fashion. Needless to say our mid-week service was cancelled and most all of us anticipate a long day today. However, the best thing to come out of this (stay with me for a second) was what could be observed immediately following.

My first observation actually occurred during the storm. Our church all of a sudden became a haven for those who were out walking or whose cars were no longer operable. Some of our lay people even gave folks rides home afterwards. After the rain and hail subsided a few of our people even began to assist one another with glass and debris clean up. Our church Media and Arts director even helped tape up multiple windows (with trash bags and gaffer tape) and then proceeded to jerry-rig a bumper back onto a vehicle so the owner could get back home. A little later I got to see neighbors across the street from the church coming out of their homes and talking and seeing how they could help one another with what lay ahead. I was reminded of a passage from Paul’s second letter to the church in Corinth, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” – II Corinthians 1:3-4

I love the idea that the compassion we extend to others is a reflection of the compassion we have received from God. In fact, the word for comfort in the Greek in this passage is parakaleō, which is best translated as come along side of. And isn’t that what compassion is all about. It’s not so much about throwing money at a cause or sending words of encouragement from a distance, but it is actually about coming alongside one another, acknowledging one another, and embracing the humanity in each other. True compassion sees the need, but it doesn’t denigrate the humanity in the process. Last night I was able to observe compassion truly lived out in the life of my church and it made me proud to be their pastor. Actually, it left me humbled. The fact that people this awesome would allow me to come alongside them and talk about Jesus is pretty spectacular. But then again, it’s also a reminder that we are all in this together. So today may be a long day for a lot of us, but we truly are all in this together.