How compassion reduces anxiety

Whenever we ask, what is compassion, we end up in a good place.

Compassion, in and of itself, is a healing agent, because wherever it is given, it is always received for the fact it is needed. Nobody takes compassion without first having the need of it. Indeed, where there is no need of it, compassion simply isn’t material.

Compassion — latin, ‘compati’ or ‘compassio’, is suffer with — is only material or visible when suffering is material or visible. It means something when it means something.

People who don’t need compassion don’t see the need of it. As a gift of grace, they aren’t aware of it.

But there are those all around us who need compassion — who need people with which to suffer with. And once we have experienced such a support from a person imbued by the Holy Spirit in such ways as they ooze Christ’s compassion, we ourselves leak out this compassion over others who come after our suffering.

Compassion, I find, is the Christ feature of Matthew 9:36 — “When Jesus saw crowds of suffering people, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”

Jesus shows by direct human example
how divine power works;
he simply had compassion on them.

Now, all that said, we can delve into the realisation that compassion alleviates stress, depression, anxiety.

Anxiety is faced by more people now than ever before. Loneliness is at epidemic levels. Over 50 percent of the Australian population are affected. And one-in-four are chronically lonely. This, among other causes, manifests in anxiety, and, because true connection is what humanity needs most, higher existential stress results in an increasingly fragmented world.

But compassion eases anxiety. I can tell you that the commonest experience I have in counselling is people walk out an hour or two after sharing their burdens lighter. The weight shifts. Nothing in their circumstances is any different. But they have been heard. And perhaps they have other perspectives to mull over. They have been met. They have had a spiritual experience. They have experienced compassion.

Compassion is suffering with. It is innate to the helping professions. Counselling, social work, pastoral ministry, mentoring, coaching, spiritual direction… all these and more have a role of connection — of giving to someone what they need in a way they couldn’t arrange it for themselves out of their own power or capacity.

If you suffer from anxiety,
get close to compassion.

God is calling you to connect with people who ooze Jesus’ compassion — and though it might feel extremely rare, pray that the Lord would lead you. You need someone who knows it’s their destiny to journey alongside you… yes, you! And as this spirit of compassion prevails upon you, you in turn will be imbued with that same spirit. You become a sojourner.

See what suffering teaches!

See how our Lord makes good, for those who love God, out of what we ordinarily see as harmful. It is an eternal compensation. Suddenly we come into the courts of anxiety with thanksgiving in our hearts, because we tap into God’s compassion.

Whenever we come alongside compassion our humanity improves.
As we receive it, we give it, and our anxiety reduces.

~

And this beautiful of all godly empathies
— this miraculous compassion —
assists even those scarred with trauma.

~

There is so much suffering in our world,
because there is so little compassion.
When we come close to compassion,
we are connected to hope in our suffering.

Photo by Zac Durant on Unsplash