HOPE AND COMPASSION

Re-post from last August: One of the top things in my life right now is amazing friends, each with their unique opinion and story. Today I am pleased to welcome one of these friends, Steve Merki, as a guest writer. Check out Steve's review of his recent read.

Jerusalem, by British scholar Simon Montefiore, is a very ambitious book. Montefiore sets out to trace the history of Jerusalem from the reign of King David all the way to the "Six Day War" in 1967. There are a lot of big words that I had to look up (my favorite was "brobdingnagian" - you can Google it). The primary lesson I took from the book is that not a lot has changed in that part of the world over the last three thousand years. There seems no end to the factions that have fought to stake their claim to the ancient city. Sadly, some of these groups have been Christian. For example, the warring Christian sects that have battled for control of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre remind me of the rival gangs in West Side Story -- only meaner.

But there are exceptions. I recognized the name Horatio Spafford as the writer of the hymn, "It Is Well with My Soul." I also knew the story behind the hymn. In November of 1873 Horatio's wife, Anna, and four of their daughters were crossing the Atlantic when their ship was struck by another ship. All four children were drowned but Anna survived. When she learned that her children were dead, she wanted to throw herself into the water after them. Instead, she sent her husband a heartbreaking telegram, "Saved alone. What shall I do?" It was in the middle of that devastating experience that Horatio penned the lines, "When peace like a river attendeth my way; when sorrows like sea-billows roll; whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, 'It is well; it is well with my soul.'"

That was not the end of the story, however. What I learned from this book is that, in the aftermath of that loss, Horatio left his prosperous law practice in Chicago and moved with his family to Jerusalem. There they founded what came to be known as the American Colony. Like many evangelicals of their time, the American Colonists expected the immediate return of Christ. But they also gave themselves to caring for their neighbors by establishing hospitals, orphanages, soup kitchens and a school. In the early years, they encountered opposition from many sources. But over time, their "cheerful hymn-singing and charitable deeds made them friends among all sects and religions" says Montefiore. The Spaffords one surviving daughter, Bertha, lived until 1968. She continued her family's gracious presence in Jerusalem until the end of her life.

That story has me thinking of the conflict that surrounds us as Christians today. It's so easy to get caught up in the battles. But when we choose instead to reach into our communities with compassion, the walls of resistance to the story of Jesus begin to come down.

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Who is Steve Merki? Click HERE.