Learning Compassion. . . the hard way

I’ve spent the last 38 hours with Jacob at Children’s Hospital due to his enlarged colon cause from an extreme case of constipation. Now as a father of five, I have cleaned up more than my share of poopy diapers, but over the last day-and-a-half I’ve cleaned up more per hour than at any other time. In the midst of it all I’ve also spent considerable time wondering what the Lord wanted to teach me through this experience. I read today’s scripture yesterday, but God showed me what it really meant about 3:00 this morning.

He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
Micah 6:8 (NIV)

Last night Jacob had a ‘BM’ about every 45 minutes which I faithfully reported to the nurses so it could be checked and weighed (yuck). At midnight I finally convinced Jacob to try to get some sleep. With nearly 40 diapers behind us I woke up at 2:30 to the sound of water pouring onto the floor as Jacob stood by his bed and said, “I have to go to the bathroom.” Long story short I spent the next half hour cleaning Jacob up as the nurse cleaned the floor and put new sheets on the bed.

With the mess cleaned up and Jacob tucked back in bed I asked to talk with the nurse and her supervisor. I was angry, and I felt rightfully so. 2 ½ hours had passed without Jacob even being checked; if he had been changed even once we could have avoided the major mess and bath; he would have slept through most of the night (I might have slept better too).

I had been showing Jacob compassion all day. As I walked down the hall, God told me the hospital staff might need compassion too. I calmly expressed my feelings and told them how Jacob had slept through several diaper changes the night before. I didn’t ask for an explanation or blow my top; I simply asked that he be checked regularly the rest of the night. The rest of the night was peaceful. I can only imagine how it might have been different if I had blown my top. Thankfully I was coherent enough to listen to the Lord and “walk humbly with [our] God.”

If we are going to fulfill what God requires of us, then we must be willing to set aside our anger, even when we feel justified. It is not up to us to prove our point or raise our voices. We simply need to speak the truth in love. Are you willing to treat others kindly, to be forgiving and to do what God asks of you?