Spiritual Gift of Compassion in the Marketplace
The spiritual gift of compassion is the special ability to spread the awareness of God’s glory by feeling genuine empathy and compassion for individuals who are hurting.
Marketplace ministers with the spiritual gift of compassion help business professionals never to forget that people are not merely consumers, employees, prospects, investors, subscribers, etc. First and foremost, people are people, so they should not be treated merely like numbers, objects, or cogs to get things done in the marketplace. Each person has a story that needs to be heard and needs that need to be met.
Spiritual Gift Recognition Statements
- “I am passionate about helping to alleviate people’s sufferings.”
- “My heart hurts when I see others hurting.”
- “People tell me I am a compassionate person.”
Marketplace Impact
As the owner and CEO of a manufacturing company named Polydeck, Peter Freissle setup a “Caring Committee” for his employees. This Caring Committee is responsible for implementing and managing numerous care and compassion programs to meet emergency financial needs for the employees in his company. These programs included an employee home repair fund, employee emergency loan fund, employee car repair fund, and a medical emergency fund to meet specific needs among the company’s staff members and their families.
Jerry, one of the Polydeck employees who received compassionate assistance from the company during his time of dire need said,
“The company surrounded me at a time of difficulty, helping me with my daughter that has osteoscaroma, which is bone cancer. The Caring Committee presented an envelope to all the employees in the plant, and everybody pitched in, and it came out to be almost two thousand dollars.”[i]
Biblical Insights
- Matthew 9:35-36
- Mark 9:41
- Luke 10:29-37
- Romans 12:8
- 1 Thessalonians 5:14
[i] Dr. Steve O. Steff, The Business Card (USA: Lanphier Press, 2012), 149.
Discussion: Do you have the spiritual gift of compassion? If so, please share how you use this spiritual gift in a business setting. Can you think of any other marketplace Christians who use this spiritual gift in a business setting? If so, please share his/her story to encourage other marketplace Christians who have this spiritual gift.
