Compassion – for a lonely woman - All The Good Seed Daily Devotionals for 2026

And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her. When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, Do not weep.
Luke 7:12–13

Compassion – for a lonely woman
What misery! First, the death of a husband – and now that of an only son. In ancient times, this meant a life of poverty and loneliness for a woman, without any hope or prospects.

Many people accompany the funeral procession. They console, empathise and suffer with her. But their help is limited. Then they encounter – certainly not by chance – the one who can help and wants to help: Jesus, the Son of God. He sees the crying need, is moved inwardly and says to the woman, “Do not weep”. Then He approaches, touches the coffin, stops the carriers and speaks to the dead man and brings him back to life. In short: He changes the hopeless situation! And the story turns out differently than anyone had expected.

Even today, there are stories that cry out: images from Syria or Ukraine, broken marriages, shattered families, abused children and women, severe illnesses, terrible accidents, paralysing loneliness, hard unforgiveness, cold selfishness; stories without hope and without any prospect of improvement.

But even today, the Lord Jesus is near. He perceives, suffers with, steps in, speaks, creates new things – brings light, love and peace into a life. In short: He changes the hopeless situation! Even if some things remain unresolved and distressing, He ensures, today as well, that life stories turn out differently than anyone expected.

The narrative is found in the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 7, verses 11–17.

Today’s reading: Judges 11:23-40 · 2 Corinthians 11:1-15