FOLLOWERS OF JESUS ARE KNOWN BY THEIR GENTLENESS

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“You have also given me the shield of Your salvation;
Your right hand has held me up, Your gentleness has
made me great.”
(Psalm 18:35)

MEDITATION:
As Christians, there is so much for us to learn from the Old Testament.
For instance, the psalmist reminds us of three blessings from the Lord.

First of all, He gives us His salvation which shields us from the arrows
of Satan. Satan might win small battles at times, but he will not win the
war for our souls.

Secondly, whenever we are weak, the psalmist reminds us that the
Lord extends His right hand to help us in our struggles. Of course,
each individual has to willingly take His hand to regain strength.

We can feel defeated whenever Satan wins a battle, but the Lord’s
strong hand not only reminds us that we are still winning the war,
but that He will encourage us to ‘gear up’ for another fight, rather
than becoming defeated by the last loss.

It is also a reminder that when our own strength is failing as we
try to cope with the trials of life, the Lord will lift us to our feet
and keep us moving forward through the trial toward the blessings
awaiting us.

Lastly, the psalmists reminds us of the gentleness the Lord has shown us.
Even if we feel that someone, or a group of people, have written us off as
failures, the Lord (the One who really matters), still knows of the plans
He has for us, and is patient as He encourages us to get up when we fail,
brush ourselves off, and move forward with renewed strength.

More importantly, He has shown us His gentleness so that if we are truly
followers of His, we will realize that true greatness is, the ability to show
gentleness to others.

Some may use others as ‘stepping stones’ to build themselves up, but those
who have allowed the gentleness of the Lord to permeate their lives, know
how to encourage others by focusing on their assets instead of their liabilities,
their successes instead of their failures, and their potentials rather than their
setbacks.

There is a problem in the Christian community because too many have failed
to embrace and incorporate the gentleness of the Lord into their lives. They
readily receive the Lord’s gentleness, but fall short of ‘paying it forward’.
Gentleness shows up in the areas of courtesy, such as saying “please” and
“thank you”, and listening to others.

Gentleness will readily step back and give another person first place.
This is contrary to the worldly philosophy of
    “get all you can and can all you get”.

It is a mindset that causes a person to think more highly of themselves
than of others. But look at Paul’s encouragement to the Philippian
Christians.
    “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit,
     but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than
     himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests,
     but also for the interests of others.”
     (Philippians 2:3-4)

When we follow Paul’s advice, the Lord’s gentleness will show in our lives
as we avoid getting upset if someone else is sitting our pew, if someone cuts
us off in traffic, etc. We will also purposely avoid calling others airheads,
idiots, etc. as a result of something they did.

Why? Because we remember that the same God who created us, created
them as well. And, as a result, we do not want to malign any of His creations
due to our personal opinions for some questionable activities.

ACTION:
Answer these questions to yourself:
    Who has saved you?
    Who holds you up?
    Who has made you great?

Now, ask yourself if others can see the Lord’s gentleness in you. We should
never be smug to the point of only receiving His gentleness and never allowing
it to change our own lives.
    He has shown you, O man, what is good;
    And what does the LORD require of you
    but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk
    humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8)

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for Your salvation,
for extending Your right hand to help me in my
struggles, and for showing me what true gentleness
looks like. Help me to allow Your gentleness to flow
through me so that others will know that not only am
I a sincere follower of You, but also that I want to be
more like You in my daily life.”

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