BE DIFFERENT; Be Empathetic
Jesus died on the cross for our sins. If we are thankful for this act, and love God for it, then we will love him in return. One trick that I find helpful to love people when I find it tricky is to empathise.
Empathising is imagining you are them. Imagine you are walking in their shoes. Imagine you are feeling and thinking what they are feeling and thinking. You are going through what they are going through.
You see your dog licking her butt. Why is she doing that? Imagine you are her. You have an itch there but have no hands. Your paws can’t reach. Your taste buds can’t really taste that much and it doesn’t taste so bad, so you lick it. It doesn’t feel itchy anymore!
Some people find empathy easy, some people can do it without thinking, others have to work on it.
Bible Passage: Romans 12:15
“Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.”
What do you think?
If you see someone who is not doing their school work, what do you think they might be feeling or thinking? Maybe they are tired because their family made them go out late last night. Maybe the work is too hard and they don’t understand the instructions but don’t want to look silly by asking for more help. Maybe they can’t see very well and all the letters look like they are floating around the page.
If you see someone who is being really mean and bullying your friend. What do you think they might be thinking or feeling? Maybe they get treated like that at home and feel like they have no power so they are trying to feel better about themselves and that’s the only way they know how. Or maybe they just haven’t been shown how good it is to treat people nicely.
If you see someone who is always eating. What do you think they might be thinking or feeling? Maybe they are hungry and going through a growth spurt. Maybe they don’t eat much at home. Maybe they have worms, who knows! Maybe they take medication that makes them hungry. Maybe they have taste buds that really enjoy all of the wonderful flavours in the world. That is like my Lucy!
Jesus empathised with the very people who nailed him to the cross.
Bible Passage: Luke 23:34
Jesus said, “Father, forgive these people! They don’t know what they’re doing.”
Story Time!
If you empathise and imagine you are walking in their shoes, it gives you a bit more understanding for the situation that they may be in. I do this in the traffic, and imagine what is going on for drivers who are annoying - slow ones and dangerous ones!
If someone is complaining to you about something, often they want you to empathise. To love them in this way, if you’re not sure what to say, just say, “that sucks hey.” Over time you can branch out and say “that is horrible that you went through that,” or “that must’ve felt horrible, sad, devastating etc.”
Doing this one thing can help you to have better connections with others, it can help you to have more patience and kindness towards others and it can help you to be happier in general in life!
Question Time!
Think of something someone has done to you lately. What did they do and what do you think they were thinking or feeling when they were going through that?
How do you think empathising could help you love that person in that situation?
