Walking Barefoot

One of the things I remember from my Pastor Care class at Seminary was a saying that Professor Nydam said. We were talking about Empathy and how we can show empathy to members in our congregations. The way he described empathy was this: "It is walking barefoot beside them through their trial." At first it sounded kind of cheesy. But having done some more reflection on this it makes a lot of sense.

When someone in our congregation is going through a hard time, as pastors it is our calling to be with them in this process. It doesn't mean that we will feel exactly how they will feel. But what it means is that we are there beside them, we struggle along with them. We hurt as they hurt.

I was thinking about this yesterday as I visited with Roy. Roy is the brother who was driving the car when his sister was killed a few weeks ago. (See earlier post, "Mixed Emotions) Roy is doing okay, but is back in the hospital. I went to see him yesterday and there are a lot of things that he is feeling. I think there is an overwhelming sense of guilt. He said a few times, "If only I would have gone back." He also said, "It's not fair that he is alive."

It is in these times that we really are walking barefoot beside them, or we should be. I mean, if we were to put ourselves in his shoes, how would we feel? I cant even begin to imagine. But it is in these times that as a pastor we can be there to listen, to try and offer some words of comfort, but those are hard to come by. The only thing that is comforting is the assurance that he has that his sister is with her Lord. In times like these we can offer words of hope as we walk barefoot beside them.