As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear Him.
Psalm 103:13
I was so excited the first time my dad let me cut the grass. I can remember the day. It was like a transition from boyhood to manhood. I was doing “dad” kinds of things. He taught me how to start the mower. To be honest, I have to tell you that I couldn’t start it at first and he had to help me. We didn’t have any of those fancy key starting mowers. Nor did we have anything that was self-propelled. It was “Tommy propelled.”
He was so thorough instructing me to cut lines and follow those lines back and forth until I finished the grass. He started the mower and watched me do a row or two and then left me to my own destruction. At the end of this trial run at the grass, it looked like a total disaster. Crooked rows and missed patches of grass. I was proud, and I was now a man.
I ran to my dad and told him I finished, and he walked around to the front yard for an inspection of my work. He looked, and I waited. He walked to the side of the yard and looked, and I waited. He said, “You did a great job!”
My father showed compassion towards me and the mess I made of his yard.
A Father Shows Compassion to His Children
My dad loved me, worked hard for our family, and provided everything we needed. Were there times when I stepped out of line and needed a little push to get back? Of course. But my father showed compassion to me. The word for compassion in this verse is a word that means “to pity.” It’s true.
Fast forward 20 years. When I saw my son struggling to bait his hook with a wiggly worm, I showed this kind of pity towards him and helped him. Showing pity is not looking down on someone but instead expressing kindness and forgiveness. All of these words describe the compassion a father has and demonstrates towards his children.
My father could have broken my spirit and told me that the grass was a complete disaster, which it was, but instead, he chose compassion. I saw the grass I missed, and the lines were more like zigs and zags. He chose kindness and love because of my attempt, not because of my perfection.
Do we respond to others like this, or do we expect perfection?
The Lord Shows Compassion to Those Who Fear Him
This phrase uses the same word for compassion. When you read this Psalm, it sounds much like a proverb, and the meaning is very clear. The Lord’s compassion is contingent on our attitude. We don’t have to be perfect, and the Lord surely knows our weaknesses and our imperfections. His compassion towards us is not dependent upon our perfection. His kindness towards us is a response to our fear of Him.
Now, before you think that God is some monster in the sky waiting to pounce on His prey, He is not. He is compassionate. He loves us, and His goodness is without borders. So what does it mean to fear Him? It’s simple. We should show the Lord respect, reverence, awe, and a healthy fear of His grace and mercy. We should understand the God continually withholds judgment and punishment from us (mercy) because of His compassion.
Many of our lives are just a mess right now. The lines are crooked, and we don’t know where to begin. We don’t need the strong hand of the Lord to knock us around. We need a steady and encouraging help, compassion, kindness, mercy, and grace from the Creator and Sustainer of the universe.
Aren’t you glad that we serve a God who is compassionate towards us when he looks at the messes we make and gives us a chance to make things right? And He is right there beside us to pick us up and encourage us along the way. God is so good.
And by the way, thanks, dad, for letting me mess up the yard and learn how to get it right. You encouraged me and probably didn’t even know it.