Compassion For Others

How can someone “teach” compassion?  How does one show compassion? What does it mean to be compassionate towards others?   This is a topic that is in the front of my mind most days. With holiday season seems to put it into BOLD letters for me.

It is important to my husband and me, that our children have an understanding  and a heart for compassion.  In this crazy mixed up world there are few things that don’t come with a price.   Being nice and showing someone you care is something that is FREE to give and most of the times FREE to receive.

Homeschooling affords us the opportunity to help others through community service. Last year the children decided to make and sell homemade soap to people in the community and at our local gym.  They raised over $ 70!   It was up to them what they wanted to do with the money, knowing that it needed to be “paid forward”   They decided on our local food pantry.  When we showed up with our jar of money, the volunteers informed the children that their money raised would buy over 400 pounds of food from our county food bank. We were so proud of their stewardship and drive!

Another way we love to give back and show compassion for others is the Toys for Tots drive!  Our community seems to have these boxes set up all over the town.  We tend to go to the one drop off at the Post Office where we enlist the postal workers to get into the pictures with the kids.  Love this community involvement. Other ways we have been able to show our compassion for others is through our Summer Backyard carnival this Summer. We “charged” an entry fee of school supplies..  The response and donations were overwhelming.  It took boxes and boxes for me to deliver it all to a school drop off location.

Each of these activities teaches our children the responsibility that we have to one another as human beings to be compassionate and help out! A daily, simple way, we show compassion for others is our prayer pail.  We have a prayer pail on our dinner table.  The way it works, the children will learn of a certain need for prayer and I write it down and add it to the prayer pail collection. Each meal we all pick a random prayer and pray for that specifically.  This is such a simple way for the children to be aware of the goings on in the world a how we need to notice to that

I encourage you this year to seek out an organization or family or charity to lend your hand to helping out. The rewards will come back to you in large numbers!

Hi, I am Melissa Newell, blogger, daughter of God, wife, mother of 4 – Jeremy 23, Zachary 7, Molly 4, Samantha 2, cancer survivor, party thrower, traveler, home educator! Other than my salvation…staying home and raising our children is the best gift I have ever been given! You can find me at my blog at: The Joys of Home Educating.

 

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7 Comments

  1. wonderful. I think teaching compassion to my children is important too. I do that by taking them with me on regular visits to retirement homes, and remote villages where we help them in areas of need.

  2. Sometimes we beat ourselves us, as homeschool moms, by comparing our endeavors with those of others. Your examples above give us refreshing encouragement to truly and simply LIVE the life we want our children to adopt and share that life with them. Thank you!

  3. What wonderful ideas on how to teach compassion! This season can be so me centered its great to focus on the real meaning of the season (Jesus) and one of the things he was so passionate about.. serving others!

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