Real Compassion [the kind with hands and feet]

Real compassion is never contained within the heart; it finds its way to hands and feet.What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?  Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?  In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. James 2:14-17We have never been more informed, more aware, more privy to the lives of others than we are now in this social media age. I just learned heartbreaking news today through Facebook about a beloved author. I don't know her personally, but I now know details about her family.Even though we are made aware of so much, we are also the most hurried, busy, preoccupied people ever to live on this planet. We know all about the world through Instagram or Twitter, but may not know that our neighbor is struggling with depression or that the girl that gives us our coffee at Starbucks has just gone through a terrible divorce.I hate going to the grocery store. Really. My goal is to knock out my list as quickly as possible and get the food into the pantry as quickly as possible. Today, I felt the Lord's encouragement to ask the grocery clerk how her day had been. She said, "terrible."I wanted at that point, to just say, "Oh, I'm sorry. I sure hope it gets better." My day derailed hours before as well. Instead, I asked her, "why?" She was simply struggling to find someone to take her injured husband to a doctor's appointment. She had no one left to ask. She couldn't get off work and lose the income. I could not relate. I felt so broken for her, so I gave her my name and number with an offer to help with the appointment.How many times have I missed opportunities like that because I was so focused on my own "hard" day or just moving so fast through my "to do" list that I just didn't see the needs around me?I have felt sad for others, and I've spoken "kind" words in response to their need, but I rarely live compassionately. Compassion moves us to action. It's more than sympathy or even empathy; it usually requires some kind of sacrifice. Maybe time out of our day or money out of our wallet, but it looks a lot like love to the one with the need.