1 00:00:02,680 --> 00:00:13,800 Speaker 1: Life Audio. 2 00:00:14,960 --> 00:00:17,759 Speaker 2: You're listening to every Day Prayers with Million Praying Moms, 3 00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:20,000 Speaker 2: helping you pray God's word for your family in the 4 00:00:20,040 --> 00:00:23,919 Speaker 2: areas you need it most. I'm your host, Nicolette Bell. Here, 5 00:00:24,200 --> 00:00:27,160 Speaker 2: we believe prayer isn't a last resort. It's our first 6 00:00:27,160 --> 00:00:30,120 Speaker 2: and best response in parenting, and every day we come 7 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:32,800 Speaker 2: together to partner with God for the hearts of our children. 8 00:00:33,120 --> 00:00:35,080 Speaker 2: In the month of April, we are hosting the Everyday 9 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:37,680 Speaker 2: Prayers for Gentleness book Club on the podcast to celebrate 10 00:00:37,720 --> 00:00:41,280 Speaker 2: our newest release, We're So Glad you're here today. The 11 00:00:41,320 --> 00:00:43,959 Speaker 2: author of our new book and mom of three, Christy Thomas, 12 00:00:44,040 --> 00:00:46,640 Speaker 2: will lead our devotion in prayer to challenge us and 13 00:00:46,800 --> 00:00:50,280 Speaker 2: encourage us on our journey to grow in gentleness. To 14 00:00:50,360 --> 00:00:53,200 Speaker 2: learn more about Christy, our new book, and the Million 15 00:00:53,240 --> 00:00:57,600 Speaker 2: Praying Mom's ministry, visit Millionprayingmoms dot com. You can find 16 00:00:57,600 --> 00:01:00,000 Speaker 2: a link in our show notes. After a brief word 17 00:01:00,040 --> 00:01:02,480 Speaker 2: from our sponsors, will pray together for our children. 18 00:01:05,480 --> 00:01:08,840 Speaker 3: In Matthew eleven, Verse twenty nine, Jesus says, take my 19 00:01:08,959 --> 00:01:11,560 Speaker 3: yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am 20 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:14,679 Speaker 3: gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest 21 00:01:14,720 --> 00:01:17,720 Speaker 3: for your souls. Hey, buddy, come over here for a 22 00:01:17,760 --> 00:01:20,039 Speaker 3: sec I called, from my spot on the couch. What 23 00:01:20,120 --> 00:01:23,680 Speaker 3: do you think gentleness means? My son looked at me quizzically, 24 00:01:23,720 --> 00:01:27,119 Speaker 3: then patted me gently on the arm. Like this, he said, 25 00:01:27,240 --> 00:01:29,200 Speaker 3: And then he grunted and pushed hard on my arm. 26 00:01:29,360 --> 00:01:33,280 Speaker 3: Not like this, I winced. You mean gentleness is when 27 00:01:33,280 --> 00:01:35,839 Speaker 3: you hold back your strength so you don't hurt someone. 28 00:01:36,600 --> 00:01:39,400 Speaker 3: He grinned and wandered away, satisfied that he had answered 29 00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:43,880 Speaker 3: my question adequately, even though I had provided the words. Usually, 30 00:01:43,959 --> 00:01:47,160 Speaker 3: our basic understanding of gentle people is similar to my sons. 31 00:01:47,520 --> 00:01:51,640 Speaker 3: They're quiet and soft, not rough. They don't assert themselves. 32 00:01:52,120 --> 00:01:55,640 Speaker 3: Maybe gentle people even seem like cowardly dormats, letting themselves 33 00:01:55,680 --> 00:02:00,000 Speaker 3: get walked over by everyone. However, Jesus identified his deeps 34 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:03,840 Speaker 3: his self as gentle and lowly in heart, and a 35 00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:06,200 Speaker 3: cursory look through the Gospels shows that he didn't fit 36 00:02:06,240 --> 00:02:09,920 Speaker 3: our basic human understanding of gentleness. He wasn't quiet and 37 00:02:10,000 --> 00:02:12,960 Speaker 3: soft of the Pharisees. He asserted himself every time he 38 00:02:12,960 --> 00:02:15,399 Speaker 3: spoke about the Kingdom of God, and while he did 39 00:02:15,480 --> 00:02:18,120 Speaker 3: let himself be crucified, it wasn't because he was a 40 00:02:18,120 --> 00:02:22,400 Speaker 3: cowardly dormat. In various Bible translations of Matthew eleven, verse 41 00:02:22,440 --> 00:02:26,640 Speaker 3: twenty nine, the words gentle and lowly are interchangeable with 42 00:02:26,800 --> 00:02:30,639 Speaker 3: meek and humble. All of these English words are translations 43 00:02:30,639 --> 00:02:34,480 Speaker 3: of a single Greek word praos, which denotes the quality 44 00:02:34,520 --> 00:02:37,840 Speaker 3: of gentle strength that rests in God's sovereignty. It is 45 00:02:37,880 --> 00:02:43,240 Speaker 3: the settled disposition of spirit that refuses retaliation, surrenders personal 46 00:02:43,320 --> 00:02:46,280 Speaker 3: rights to the Lord's will in Channel's power through mercy. 47 00:02:47,200 --> 00:02:49,720 Speaker 3: Gentleness is starting to sound a lot more like humility 48 00:02:49,880 --> 00:02:54,079 Speaker 3: than like just the opposite of rough, isn't it. Rather 49 00:02:54,160 --> 00:02:57,040 Speaker 3: than being the personality trait of someone quiet and submissive, 50 00:02:57,600 --> 00:02:58,600 Speaker 3: gentleness is a. 51 00:02:58,600 --> 00:03:01,520 Speaker 4: Character trait of people who trust God so much that 52 00:03:01,560 --> 00:03:04,760 Speaker 4: they don't focus on themselves are their own needs. The 53 00:03:04,760 --> 00:03:10,520 Speaker 4: Bible rarely contrasts gentleness with physical roughness. Instead, gentleness is 54 00:03:10,600 --> 00:03:14,679 Speaker 4: contrasted with bitter envy and selfish ambition in James three 55 00:03:14,800 --> 00:03:18,160 Speaker 4: thirteen fourteen and described as the opposite of being quarrelsome 56 00:03:18,520 --> 00:03:21,799 Speaker 4: in two Timothy two twenty four and twenty five. Therefore, 57 00:03:21,919 --> 00:03:25,280 Speaker 4: when Jesus calls himself gentle and lowly. He means he 58 00:03:25,960 --> 00:03:29,839 Speaker 4: fully trusts God's goodness and control in every situation. He's 59 00:03:29,919 --> 00:03:33,760 Speaker 4: not occupied with himself. He is not quarrelsome, he is 60 00:03:33,800 --> 00:03:37,560 Speaker 4: not jealous, and he does not have selfish ambitions. Jesus 61 00:03:37,600 --> 00:03:40,000 Speaker 4: was able to live a life of humility and gentleness 62 00:03:40,480 --> 00:03:43,200 Speaker 4: because he fully trusted that his father had his best 63 00:03:43,200 --> 00:03:45,960 Speaker 4: interests at heart, and he knew his father's goodness and 64 00:03:46,000 --> 00:03:50,120 Speaker 4: control over the situation. Intimately, when we know we can 65 00:03:50,160 --> 00:03:53,200 Speaker 4: deeply trust that God is good and loves us and 66 00:03:53,280 --> 00:03:55,960 Speaker 4: is in control of our lives, will also be able 67 00:03:55,960 --> 00:03:58,680 Speaker 4: to live the kind of life that's not preoccupied with self. 68 00:03:59,280 --> 00:04:00,440 Speaker 4: Will be more than just. 69 00:04:00,680 --> 00:04:03,680 Speaker 3: Not rough with our kids, our coworkers, and the people 70 00:04:03,720 --> 00:04:06,440 Speaker 3: we meet on the internet. But we'll choose to focus 71 00:04:06,480 --> 00:04:09,440 Speaker 3: on the needs of others instead of our own needs 72 00:04:09,480 --> 00:04:13,080 Speaker 3: and wants. When we truly trust God to care for us, 73 00:04:13,440 --> 00:04:15,720 Speaker 3: we won't be jealous because we'll know that God has 74 00:04:15,760 --> 00:04:19,000 Speaker 3: our best interests in mind. We won't be quarrelsome because 75 00:04:19,040 --> 00:04:22,719 Speaker 3: we won't be constantly trying to be right. We'll even 76 00:04:22,760 --> 00:04:25,480 Speaker 3: be able to live out Paul's vision outlined in Philippians 77 00:04:25,520 --> 00:04:28,480 Speaker 3: two three to four, where it says do nothing out 78 00:04:28,480 --> 00:04:32,280 Speaker 3: of selfish ambition or conceit, but inhumility consider others as 79 00:04:32,320 --> 00:04:35,159 Speaker 3: more important than yourselves. Everyone should look not to his 80 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:38,760 Speaker 3: own interests, but rather to the interests of others. The 81 00:04:38,800 --> 00:04:41,640 Speaker 3: only way we can live like this is when, like Jesus, 82 00:04:41,760 --> 00:04:44,240 Speaker 3: we're so confident in God's goodness and power that we 83 00:04:44,600 --> 00:04:47,080 Speaker 3: know we don't need to obsess about our own interests 84 00:04:47,120 --> 00:04:50,280 Speaker 3: because God's got them in hand. We can hold back 85 00:04:50,320 --> 00:04:53,480 Speaker 3: our own strengths because we trust in God's strengths on 86 00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:57,919 Speaker 3: our behalf. Let's pray, Jesus, I praise you because you 87 00:04:58,000 --> 00:05:01,080 Speaker 3: are gentle and lowly, not obsessing about yourself or what's 88 00:05:01,080 --> 00:05:04,040 Speaker 3: best for you, but considering our interests is even more 89 00:05:04,080 --> 00:05:08,080 Speaker 3: important than yours. I confess I don't usually live like this, 90 00:05:08,400 --> 00:05:10,760 Speaker 3: and I often don't even want to live like this. 91 00:05:11,600 --> 00:05:14,599 Speaker 3: Please change my heart and help me to trust in 92 00:05:14,640 --> 00:05:18,800 Speaker 3: your goodness and control over every situation in your name, Amen. 93 00:05:19,320 --> 00:05:21,240 Speaker 2: As part of our book called This Month, we are 94 00:05:21,279 --> 00:05:24,200 Speaker 2: making all of the wonderful perks of our paid Patreon 95 00:05:24,320 --> 00:05:28,279 Speaker 2: members available at the free tier. That's right, the daily 96 00:05:28,320 --> 00:05:32,760 Speaker 2: devotionals in written form, bonus materials, special previews, and more 97 00:05:33,400 --> 00:05:36,359 Speaker 2: free to you. This month only. See the link in 98 00:05:36,400 --> 00:05:38,520 Speaker 2: our show notes are on our website to get connected. 99 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:41,960 Speaker 2: Until next time, friends, the Lord bless you and keep you. 100 00:05:42,320 --> 00:05:45,680 Speaker 2: Make his face shine upon you, and be gracious to you. 101 00:05:45,720 --> 00:05:48,479 Speaker 2: May the Lord look with favor upon you and give 102 00:05:48,520 --> 00:05:49,320 Speaker 2: you peace.