Please tell us of a time that you showed great compassion to someone or some cause. How did you, and what were the results?

No. The bible you quote also tells us to keep these deeds to ourselves, and not brag about them to others.

@RealEyesRealizeRealLies Please cite the verse you’re referring to. It could be interpreted as something other than what you interpret it as. Maybe if you don’t like to tell us of specific deeds, would you like to disclose how often you commit deeds of compassion?

I never look for return on my investment in the well-being of others.

My step-daughter’s husband was killed in a work-related incident. I made whatever sacrifices were needed to maximize the help my wife and I could offer.

It does not take such a catastrophe to elicit my compassion. I offer my help according to their needs and my ability to help.

The highest form of giving is where you help without looking for reward or acknowledgement. This explains the lack of details I am reporting.

@ENGOfAB

Matthew 6:1–34 ESV

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. ...”

Most people probably don’t feel too comfortable talking about their own acts of compassion. But compassion is a great subject for discussion- it can be very moving. Welcome to Fluther!

Thanks @Haleth. You beat me to it.

Also, the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector.

Luke 18:9–14
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: 10“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee stood up and prayed about[a] himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’

13“But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’

14“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

@Haleth Now there is a bible verse I can agree with. I’m sure all of us have done some good deeds but we were taught not to toot our own horns.

I’m not a Christian, I’m not anything in terms of having a belief system chosen off the standard menu, but since there is some scripture quotin’ going on I will add this:

Matthew 25:31–46
(New International Version)

31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory.

32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.

35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,

36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?

38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?

39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40 “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,

43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

45 “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

I try the best I can to be compassionate in ways large and small, mostly small, every day, but most of us are not faced with the challenge or the chance to engage in large acts of compassion on a daily basis. But I believe that, what good there is in the Bible, is exemplified in these passages. You feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, you clothe the poor, you have compassion for the sick, you try to be kind, and decent and not just think about yourself, and your own family and friends, etc. Just a small example, I was out on the sidewalk, outside of work, having a smoke, and a homeless kid came by asking where he could get a drink of water. The other people around just ignored him, they wouldn’t even speak to him. For god’s sake all he wants is a drink of water, and all the people around me, I suspect, believed themselves to be Christians, but I was the only one who would even bother to tell him that there was a water fountain in the library across the street. A very, very tiny act of compassion. But it disgusted me that no one else would even answer him. And I have also engaged in somewhat greater acts of compassion, but I am much better at the ordinary day to day stuff, which is not so bad. I certainly won’t be getting the Nobel Peace Prize, that’s for sure. And I’m certainly not a saint. I can be as selfish and self absorbed as anyone, but I’m decent enough, mostly.

@lillycoyote

Nice!

Do not by any means expect gratitude in the end.

In my case I helped someone in a store who was low on blood sugar. I bought them food, as he was about to faint. I stayed with him until he felt better. He said he did not need an ambulance but would like some help finishing his shopping. He was old and alone at the time.

It made me feel good about myself, and thats the only thing I got in return. I never expected anything more.

It was a cold and rainy day today. I went to the pharmacy to pick up medication for a relative, and on the way back passed a man walking in this freezing rain. He had his jacket wrapped around a bag he was trying to keep dry. I simply pulled over, opened the door to my warm vehicle, and asked him if he’d like a ride to get out of the rain. I do things for others every single day, and I don’t normally toot my horn but at the same time I think people don’t realize how something as little as holding a door for someone with their arms full, looking someone in the eye and smiling, can be a small but significant gesture toward another human being that you care. Don’t tell my father I picked up a stranger. I get yelled at for it quite a bit, but I only do it when I feel my heart leads me to do it.

But people really do kind of lose that little special secret when they brag about it. It becomes like, I don’t know, the reward of being the only person who knows what you did is taken, and it becomes more about getting attention or something.

Tell you what. I suggest you write another question. Ask everyone what is something kind someone has done for THEM that touched their lives recently. Then people can toot away, and be tooting about how great other people are that have done something kind for them, without feeling like braggarts about themselves.

Hope you are feeling better.

A showing of compassion is not something about which to gloat. Truly compassionate acts are often not even acknowledged by the actor.

removed by me because I seem to be temporarily illiterate

You’re mixing “did you get positive returns” and quoting Bible verses?

@PandoraBoxx Who is?