Seven-Day Practical Faith Blog: Compassion + Action + Relating = ...

Luke 10:33 A Samaritan, who was on a journey, came to where the man was. But when he saw him, he was moved with compassion.

I was getting desperate. Midway through a four-hour flight, my wife Sara had experienced two severe medical conditions. A diabetic, her blood sugar had shot up near 600 (which is dangerously high). Sara was also experiencing stabbing pains in her chest and back.

I did what I could in row 21, but I ran out of options to counter these conditions. I escalated to the American Airlines flight crew. Among other activities, they asked for any doctors or nurses aboard to visit our row. Two doctors and a nurse responded.

They mainly focused on the heart issue, monitoring her vital signs, administering oxygen and nitroglycerin tablets, and communicating with the flight crew. When one doctor said, "I can't rule out a heart attack," American went into emergency mode and cleared a path for the plane to accelerate to our airport and head straight for the gate and an ambulance crew.

But I was more worried about the other condition, for which the doctors had no onboard solutions: the escalated blood sugar. I suspected Sara had gone into a dangerous condition called DKA. I asked the flight attendant to request anyone with insulin to come to our row.

A man from the back of the plane arrived with his injector pen. We confirmed he and Sara used the same brand of insulin. He asked how much insulin to inject; I gave him a number representing a high amount. The man didn't hesitate; he set the dial on his pen and injected the insulin into her arm.

Just after he donated to Sara, the man's eyes welled up with tears. "I know what she's going through right now," he said as he looked straight at me. "I've been there." And my eyes welled up too, the first time that had happened while I was in emergency action mode. I felt if he knew what Sara was experiencing, he also understood what I was experiencing.

This man was a Good Samaritan for us. Both the diabetic and the biblical character practiced compassion, action, and relating. Summing these qualities produces a word that is not in vogue right now, so much so that I didn't use it in the headline: Empathy.

Empathy is defined as identifying with or experiencing the feelings or attitudes of another person. The Good Samaritan displayed empathy. By telling this parable, Jesus instructed us to employ empathy as well with active, relating compassion.

To apply the empathy equation, the Good Samaritan first felt compassion for the man lying on the roadside, beaten by robbers. He didn't hesitate to act, tending to the man's injuries and providing a place for rest and healing. But how did the Good Samaritan show relating? It's hard to assess the thinking of a parable character, but we do it with every parable, so here goes.

This Jericho road was a perilous place. Robbers commonly attacked sojourners. In fact, sometimes one thief would pretend to be hurt, wait for a compassionate soul to stop, and then his fellow thieves would jump out to harm and steal. One could argue the story's other characters who didn't stop were worried about such a ploy.

As he engaged the victim, the Samaritan could have thought, "There but for the grace of God go I." It's an empathetic thought for all of us as we engage others who are struggling and in need.

Back to our fellow diabetic passenger. He had compassion for Sara's situation, just like the doctors and nurse did. He took action to help, just like the doctors and nurse did. But he also clearly related, moved to tears because he could understand what Sara was going through. He knew the road ahead for her. The way he related completed the empathy equation.

To finish the account, Sara was whisked off the plane to a nearby hospital, where she stayed five days. She did not have a heart attack, but a cardiologist identified fluid on her heart as the pain source. Sara had indeed entered DKA and required a few days to stabilize her sugars. But she is home now and gradually resuming normal activities.

We are so grateful for every person that responded, even passengers around us who were inconvenienced by the swirl of activity. But I'm especially thankful for the empathetic diabetic who gave generously and felt our feelings. He injected Sara with insulin; he injected me with caring comfort that helped me through the drama and uncertainty.

Sometimes we are called to take a risk. I discuss in detail how we can respond to Jesus's call in my book and small group video series, "From Comfort Zone to Trust Zone." Please look into this material at CecilTaylorMinistries dot com.