Stewards or Hoarders?

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the same comfort we ourselves have received from God” 2 Co. 1:3-4.

This is a Christian principle that is a call to duty.  It is an exchange between the Body of Christ that flows freely in and out as we walk through this life on earth.  We cannot know the comfort of God without pain and suffering.   We cannot feel compassion for others without the experience of needing compassion.  In Griefshare I hear people explain the difference in their responses before their experience of grief and afterwards.  Before their own loss, they respond to the news of someone else’s loss through the intellect, sending cards…lifting a prayer…moving on.  Once they have experienced their own loss, news of a loss stirs up compassion and sorrow.  Their head processes the news but their hearts process the emotions and they reach out in comfort. 

We are to be stewards of our experiences instead of hoarders of them.   We were intended to pass along everything good given to us through our suffering such as wisdom, compassion, and encouragement to name a few.  To withhold true compassion from others is to go against God’s principle.  We are to be conduits of God’s grace, mercy, compassion and comfort instead of withholding the benefits of what we received.  I have known those who attempt to hide their pain and suffering becoming ineffective in the Kingdom.  Their pride withholds what is to be extended to others. 

‘Stewards are caretakers; they’re those entrusted with a resource in order to responsibly make the most of it…The same expectation applies to our experiences …we’re expected to be responsible caregivers of what God has done in and through us.  We’re to make the most of the story He has given us to live’ Faith Limps, p. 127.

Are you a steward of your circumstances or a hoarder?