Anthony Delgado has a wonderful wife and three children. Anthony directs Youth Ministry at Before we talk too much about the spiritual gift of mercy, there is one defining factor of this gift. It has to do with motives. When someone is hurting do you immediately assume that they deserve the pain in some way? That’s me, btw. I have to take intentional action to be merciful. That’s not a gift, it’s obedience.
The person who, by nature, empathizes with those who are hurting probably has this gift. Don’t confuse empathy with sympathy. Sympathy requires that you have experienced the pain yourself and so it is easy for you to be concerned about someone else with that pain. Everyone does this to some extent. Empathy is when a person is hurting and you cannot relate to it.
If you have the spiritual gift of mercy, you will naturally empathize with people. I have heard it said that when someone is hurting, they usually do not want you to fix it. They already have doctors and counselors for that. What they need is someone to jump in the mud puddle and hang out with them. They need someone to tell about their pain and to pray for them; someone to bring them meals and take them to appointments or court dates or whatever. They just need to be loved.
My heart is joyous when I see this gift, but I have often been brought to tears when I see this gift among the youth of the church. I don’t believe that many get this precious gift, but it is critical to the proper function of the church. I have many times seen a college student counseling a Jr. Higher or one teen praying for another. I have seen teens on the verge of tears as their peers share in small groups about their trials and temptations. This is mercy.
If you had mercy come up on your spiritual gifts test then you may have this gift. Watch for those people who need to be loved and have mercy on them; empathize with them. Next time the Spirit is telling you to go talk to someone, do it. They will be blessed.