Gentleness: It's Your Move
Bible Readings
Take a few minutes to read the Bible verses listed and ask the Holy Spirit to lead you in how this verse applies to you this week.
17 So God's promise came true, just as Isaiah the prophet had said, 18 “Here is my chosen servant! I love him, and he pleases me. I will give him my Spirit, and he will bring justice to the nations. 19 He won't shout or yell or call out in the streets. 20 He won't break off a bent reed or put out a dying flame, but he will make sure that justice is done. 21 All nations will place their hope in him.”
Matthew 12:17-21
Memory Verse
Galatians 5:22-23
22 God's Spirit makes us loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, 23 gentle, and self-controlled. There is no law against behaving in any of these ways.
Carson groaned when his move caused the Jenga® blocks to crash to the kitchen table. “You’ll never win Jenga® by force, Carson,” said his older sister, Ava, as she slowly reset the wooden block tower. “Move the blocks lightly to keep the tower standing. Gentle, gentle. You have to be gentle.”
If you think of gentleness as fuzzy blankets, fluffy kittens, or being weak and walked over by people, you might be surprised to learn that God’s Son, Jesus, is gentle and strong. In today’s passage, we learn that when Jesus saw broken, hurting, or forgotten people, he was strong and gentle to help. Jesus didn’t bring change through shouting, fighting, or snuffing people out like a birthday candle. No! Jesus was always for people, not against them. People were helped, healed, and changed through the power of his gentleness.
When you get a bad grade, strike out in baseball, or put a hole in your favorite shirt, do you beat yourself up with ugly names, or are you gentle to yourself as Jesus is with you? Do you fight back and get even when someone is mean to you? Or do you respond with the power of gentleness so they know you are for them and they are loved? Try this the next time someone hurts you with their words or actions. Picture a Jenga® tower in that person’s heart. How can you be so strong, loving, and gentle with them that their inner tower stays standing? Before you make your move, especially if you’re ready to topple them with your words, you may even want to whisper a prayer, “Gentle, gentle. Jesus, help me be as gentle with them as you are with me.”Â
Prayer
Lord, thank you for Jesus, who is strong, gentle, and kind. Teach me to be for people and not against them. May your Spirit make me as gentle with myself and others as you are with me. Amen.Related Resources
Lenae Bulthuis
Lenae Bulthuis wants every child to know who God is and what He says about them. With over 25 years of experience, she has been a women’s conference speaker, authored devotionals and articles, and was a former GEMS Global Curriculum/Content Director. Lenae and her husband, Mike, live on a Minnesota grain and livestock farm. She enjoys spending time with family and always has at least three books on the nightstand.