The Compassion of Our Father (by Elder Chris Wu)

“As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.
For he knows our frame;
he remembers that we are dust.”
(Psalm 103:13–14)

I have two kids who are over 10 years old, and two kids who are under 4 years old. That comes with its own set of challenges in the day-to-day, and some subtle ones in the year-to-year. One that I’ve had some time to reflect on is how fragile and not-fragile, or incapable and capable, I think each of my kids to be. And especially, how often I can get that mixed up while handling such a wide age range. The older my child is (we call them the “bigs,” as opposed to the “littles”), the more I start to lean on the appraisal that, “he/she is old enough, strong enough, smart enough, so _________.” And that’s a good thing most of the time. It pushes me to let them grow and be their own person, to make their own mistakes, to give them responsibility and teach them consequences. Kids don’t benefit in the long-term from excessive hand-holding or sheltering. (Maybe it’s a dad thing.)

But in reflecting on why Psalm 103 is often so precious to me as a child of God, I wonder if sometimes I miss one of the greatest things about the love of God as I endeavor to mirror it to my own children: “As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.” To put it another way, the true and perfect Father is compassionate to His children because He knows our limitations and created nature. He remembers that He formed us from the earth in His image. He remembers that our life comes from His breath. He remembers that we can do nothing without Him. He remembers that even when we stray, only His love and power are able to bring us home. He remembers that we are not God. And so His compassion for us is appropriately tender. I love how concise but rich David makes it by simply saying, “he remembers that we are dust.”

I wonder if I see people in that light when I think about loving them well. Especially people with whom I have some sort of responsibility relationship with, like my kids. Do I see their fragile nature as created beings? Or do I implicitly expect them to be mini-gods, thinking mostly of their powers or responsibilities? Am I willing to err on the side of compassion and sacrifice? Do I tenderly bring them along toward the fear of God by reminding them of His steadfast love in the face of their “dustiness”? Like Paul in Rom 2:4, do I understand that even in rebuke, God’s kindness is what brings us to repentance? That’s some good news I’d hope my kids can see from how I love them. And I pray it’s good news that all our neighbors and coworkers get to see as a dusty but dearly loved child of God!-Chris Wu