Matthew 16:15-16, Matthew 16:23-24, Philippians 1:21
The Compassion We Think We Have
Not a one of us are as compassionate as we like to think we are.
We like to believe that if we could see someone’s pain clearly enough, we would naturally respond with compassion. But the truth is, we rarely see people exactly as they are. We see them through the stories we have already created about them.
We force people into the illusion we have constructed, and then our brains adjust the perception to make the illusion feel like reality. Their motives become what we assume they must be. Their failures become evidence of their character. Their struggles become consequences they must have brought upon themselves.
And somehow, we can convince ourselves that we are being discerning when what we are really doing is protecting our own perception.
The uncomfortable part is that this isn’t just something other people do.
I’m learning that, too.
And that’s saying something after six decades of life, a mountain of experiences, and more than enough wisdom to have accumulated along the way. You would think by now I would have this figured out.
But perhaps some lessons aren’t meant to be learned once and filed away. Perhaps they have to be learned again every time we encounter someone whose life doesn’t fit neatly into the explanation we’ve already given ourselves.
That’s why this isn’t an indictment of anyone—not even myself.
It’s an invitation to look a little closer.
Because there may be someone in your life right now whom you have already decided you understand.
You know why they act the way they do.
You know what their problem is.
You know what they should have done.
You know what they deserve.
And because you’ve built a convincing explanation, you may not even realize that you’ve stopped seeing the person and started seeing the explanation.
That’s where compassion gets lost.
Real compassion requires enough humility to say, “Maybe there is more here than I can see.”
It doesn’t mean excusing everything. It doesn’t mean abandoning discernment. It doesn’t mean pretending wrong is right.
It simply means leaving room for the possibility that our perception is incomplete.
Because every person we encounter is carrying a life far more complicated than the part we can see.
And maybe compassion begins there—not when we finally understand everyone, but when we become humble enough to realize that we don’t.
Sometimes the most compassionate thing we can do is stop explaining the person long enough to actually see them.
-Pastor Butch
Weekly Encouragement
8/2/26
written by Frank Gupton
To protect yourself from mental exhaustion, you need to remind yourself that Jesus is with you always, taking care of you, it's possible to rejoice in Christ, and proclaim His sufficiency even during difficult times. This is a supernatural work, empowered by His Spirit who lives in you! So be joyful in Christ your Savior, for He is indeed enough! Habakkuk 3:3-17-18 "Though the fig tree does not bud .... though the olive crop fails .... though there are no sheep in the pen, no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior."
Just encouraging a spirit of thankfulness in the believer today.
Philippians 1:21, “To me, living means having Christ. To die means that I would have more of Him.”
For the believer, death is not the end; it is the doorway into the fullness of eternal life. Our last day on earth becomes our first day in His presence.
But for the unbeliever, death brings a sobering reality.
We have hope!
“Christian brothers, we want you to know for sure about those who have died. You have no reason to have sorrow as those who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and then came to life again. Because we believe this, we know that God will bring to life again all those who belong to Jesus.”
—1 Thessalonians 4:13-14
Amen
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Don't be Bob!
Pastor Butch Robinson
I learned to drive by watching people. I learned to fix things by watching people. I’ll tell you now, life is expensive if you have to pay people to do everything. I learned that listening rather than talking tells me more about a person than I likely want to know. Or even, than they want me to know. Some folks are way too proud of themselves.
Everything that we do involves being present and alert, listening for and noticing the small details. We have to remain objective and non-judgmental at least, until we know better. Even then we should keep the judgment to ourselves.
We need to understand how to read a room and interpret things such as body language. The main thing is that we practice these skills consistently. Why? So that we are not ignorant and so that we are not taken advantage of.
Proverbs 22:3 talks about the prudent person. The prudent person is wise, show’s good judgment. They are cautious and discerning in their decision-making especially those in keeping with the will of God. People today are so focused on the here and now that they fail to prepare for what lies ahead. Being prudent in all facets of life is how we hide from coming judgment. There is great wisdom to be found in judging ourselves before others do. Prudency serves as a shroud of protection from dangers that can be avoided by simply using good sense.
Check this out.
Three fellows were sitting by a river. One of them stood up and said, “I forgot my fishing pole. I’ll run get it. Stepping out in the water before him, he walked across to the other side, where their small cabin was. He grabbed his pole and returned to where the other two fellows were.
No sooner than he got back, a second fellow stood up and said, “Man, I didn’t grab the bait can.” He walked calmly across the water to the other side of the river and then returned in few minutes, same way. The one left, his name is Bob, watched all this intently.
Figuring that this was test, Bob says, “Y’all think you’re so smart...!! Hold my sweet tea and watch this.” He runs to the edge of river bank. He put his foot in and fell into waist-deep water. He got out and tried again and again and again, to no avail. After watching in silence, one of them other fellows said, “Should we tell him where the stepping stones are?”
Things aren’t always what they seem. More than ever, we need the whole story--pay attention. I believe today there are more people intent on making others feel or look bad than ever before. Being prudent takes that power from them.
In the case of the third man, he didn’t know the whole story. He hadn’t been as observant as he thought. He watched but couldn’t see below the surface. He had seen the other two seemingly, walk on water and figured them to be no better than he. The prudent man knows that no one today walks on water so why didn’t this factor into his thinking? Not to be outdone, he jumps to his feet and lights out. By the time he gets there, it’s too late. He wasn’t at all prepared for what was to come. He wasn’t being practically wise. He was hedging his bets on simple. Proverbs 14:15 says, “The simple believes every word, (and, everything he sees), but the prudent considers well his steps.” A simple person is naïve. He is susceptible to every new idea or fad. He believes everything he hears and none of what he sees. See, if this man had been a prudent man, he’d of taken a second look, Kind of a “measure twice, cut once” sort of thing.
Gullibility is ready to believe everything as long as it is coming from someone they believe is an authority. I used to tell my family that they sometimes don’t believe a word that I say but if Dr. Oz said it woo, they’d bite hook, line, and sinker.
Had the young man known the locations of the stepping stones, wouldn’t you say that his foundation would have been a lot stronger?
I don’t reckon there’s any use to soft-pedal the facts here, I believe there’s a day coming that will be the hardest of any that we’ve endured. Now is when we can either build our case, change our course, or just show that we have what it takes to persevere.
Things ain’t always what they seem. Don’t be Bob.
Be sure.
The Great EpiphanyI heard a lady say, in the most positive, assertive, agreeable—and perhaps slightly judgmental—way:“If you had been meditating on the Word of God, you would have been transformed.”How true is that? Take a moment and just sit with that thought.I find myself pondering it.James said we are to be doers of the Word and not hearers only. David wrote that by hiding God’s Word in our hearts, we will not sin against Him. Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.”Those weren’t merely wise observations. They were divine truth, given by inspiration of God.Maybe we spend too much time looking for something new, something deeper, something profound. Meanwhile, God has already spoken.For the believer, the Word of God is to be ever before us—like frontlets between our eyes. It is to shape our thoughts, guide our decisions, correct our paths, and transform our lives.Maybe the great epiphany is not discovering something new.Perhaps it’s finally doing what God has already said.-Pastor Butch
The sunset behind our church.
Photo taken by Scott Sexton
135 Winstead Dr.
Danville VA
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