As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. - Psalm 103:13-14
For even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it -- though I did regret it, for I see that that letter grieved you, though only for a while. As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us. For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. - 2 Corinthians 7:8-10
I walked over to a table full of giggling girls, all simultaneously hitting the table, playing some sort of game. I was on "lunch duty." I had already told them that I thought they should stop banging on the table, and after confirming my judgment with another teacher, I walked back to the table to tell them to stop. When I arrived, I asked them to stop, and one of the girls hit the table one last time. Disrespect being clearly the offense, I told the girl to come and seem me in my classroom after school so that I could give her a demerit (essentially a "punishment" for bad behavior, which the students must show to their parents, and which will go on their school record). The student pleaded with me not to give her one, and said how sorry she was, but I knew that sometimes the most loving thing I can do for a student is to punish bad behavior.
The day went on, and I was undecided on whether or not to give her a demerit. When the bell rang to end school, I found her and told her to come to my class to discuss her actions at lunch. I had decided in my heart at this point not to give her a demerit, but I wanted to discuss with her the seriousness of her actions, the seriousness of disrespect. She was coming to my class room with the belief that she was receiving a demerit. When I sat her down, and began to talk to her about her behavior, she began to cry, even sob. I instantly felt compassion for her.
To some, her crying may have been simply an attempt to escape punishment (you girls know what I am talking about), but in my heart, I could see that she was intensely sorry for her actions. I told her that I was not giving her a demerit, but I made sure that she understood that her actions were wrong and that they deserved a punishment. Even after I made it clear that she would not be punished, she continued to sob. The compassion in my heart swelled, and I told her that God was pouring out His awesome grace to her through me. Eventually she left and went home, and only Jesus knows what was going on in her heart, but that moment made a lasting impression on me.
I thought about God and how He mercifully has compassion on us. But then I thought about how different my response may have been had she been cold and unrepentant for her actions. How God must love those who come to His throne of grace, sobbing over the wrong they have done. How His heart must melt with compassion when His children see their sin and are broken over it. I am not saying that God does not punish us after we come to Him sorry for our wrongs, for that is most often the best thing for us. Nonetheless, how God's heart must swell with compassion when His children turn to Him and are genuinely sorry. Perhaps we should pray for broken hearts. Pray for hearts that are so in love with our Heavenly Father that when we turn from Him, we are filled with "godly grieve" for having offended Him by our utter disrespect for His love, His truth, His guidance, and His mercy.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. - Psalm 51:17
The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. - Psalm 34:18
But [God] gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." - James 4:6
