When You Don't Have Enough

Jesus just got the worst news. His cousin John—the one who baptized him, the one who prepared the way—has been murdered. And Jesus does something that might surprise you: he withdraws. He gets in a boat. He finds a quiet place. He grieves.

This matters because sometimes we think following Jesus means we're not allowed to be sad. Like real faith means stuffing down every hard emotion and slapping on a smile. But look at Jesus. He's fully God and fully human, and when something terrible happens, he takes time to feel it. He doesn't pretend it's fine. He doesn't spiritualize it away. He weeps.

But then the crowds show up. They follow him on foot. They need him. And here's where it gets interesting—Jesus doesn't send them away. He doesn't say, "Not today, I'm dealing with my own stuff." Instead, the Bible says he had compassion on them. That word means his heart broke for them. From his guts. Even in his own pain, he saw their pain and moved toward it.

That's the kind of Savior we have. One who knows what it's like to hurt and still chooses to love. One who doesn't wait until he's got it all together to show up for people. And if that's how Jesus operates, maybe that's how we're supposed to operate too—not waiting until we're perfect to be present, but showing up with whatever we've got, trusting that compassion is always the right first step.