Beverly's Blurbs: Week 3 - SURRENDERED HEARTS

Many of us misunderstand the meaning of meekness because we have the mistaken idea that it means weakness. The words may rhyme, my friend, but that's all they have in common. Meekness is NOT weakness.

For many of us the word meek conjures a mental image of a shy, reticent person. This too is a mistaken definition of meekness; for meekness in NO way equates to timidity. A meek person is not an unassertive "Mr. Milquetoast" so quit picturing Barney Fife.

Certainly no one could accuse Moses of being a weak and timid man, yet God identified him as the meekest man on the face of the earth. Read Numbers 12:3.

Jesus was the most courageous man ever to walk the earth, and yet He said of Himself, "I am meek and lowly in heart" (Matt. 11:29 KJV).

Meekness is power under control.

Both Moses and Jesus faced difficult and dangerous situations but they came through victoriously because they exercised power under control. The bible does not call believers to be spineless wimps whose "feathers are never ruffled." It does not tell us not to get angry. In fact, Ephesians 4:29 tells us: "in your anger, do not sin." There are times we are expected to express anger. Righteous anger. Sinless anger.

Remember the anger Moses expressed when he came down from Mount Sinai and saw the Israelites worshiping a golden calf? Do you remember the anger Jesus displayed when He strode into the temple and drove out the money changers? There is an anger that destroys, of course; but there is also a righteous anger that builds up and expresses power that is under control.

Anger is power, just like fire is. When fire is under control, it is our servant and accomplishes great things for us ... like warming our homes and cooking our supper. But when fire is out of control, it becomes our master and the results are destruction. It's the same way with anger. Meek people have power that is under control.

The Greek word translated meek is praus. Here's a few things the Complete Word Study Dictionary lists as defining it:

mildness, forbearance
primarily it does not denote outward expression of feeling, but an inward grace of the soul
it is the acceptance of God's dealings with us considering them as good in that they enhance the closeness of our relationship with Him
it also encompasses expressing wrath toward the sin of man as demonstrated by Jesus
it is the blessedness that exists in one's heart from being actively angry at evil

In laymen's terms, praus describes the complete surrender to God's will and way in your life.

God gave Beth Moore a wonderful illustration of meekness when she was writing Living Beyond Yourself, her Bible study on the Fruit of the Spirit. One evening as she was meditating on the meaning of this Greek word, her then 11 year old daughter, Melissa, called her to come upstairs. Here's the story as Beth tells it: "Melissa sat in the bathtub, drenched from head to toe, and said: 'I've got a problem - a big problem. Last week I found a small tangle in the back of my hair and I tried to get it out with the brush but it hurt so much that I quit. Every day it's gotten bigger and bigger and now look!' In the back, nearly all of her very long, thick hair was in one huge tangle. It was so big and so tight I could not imagine any other solution but scissors; yet I would have had to cut her hair to the scalp. I could not believe the mess."

Can't you just envision it, girls? Any of us who have raised daughters know what a nightmare it can be to get tangles out of their hair. My little granddaughter sometimes begins yelling "Ow - ow - ow" before I even get the brush to her hair!

Beth continues: "I sat down beside her, asking God for patience and began to brush - one hair at a time! I tried to hold her hair as tightly as I could so that she would not feel it pull, but finally the knot was too close for me to fit my hand between it and her head. The tears streamed down her cheeks.

I asked, 'Do you want me to stop?' 'No, Mommy. If you do I'll never get it out. Keep brushing.' It took us many minutes to get through those tangles, and those minutes seemed like hours. Totally submitted to untangling the mess she was in, she rested her head in my lap and endured the pain. Her tears were not those of resistance. They were tears of submission: knowing the end was worth the means."

That, my friend, is a picture of meekness. Sometimes we get our lives in tangled messes, don't we? Sometimes we allow certain situations to go unchecked for too long. We need to do what Melissa did. We need to rest in God's faithful care - cry when we must - but allow Him to comb out the tangles of our lives until we are free. That's what it means to surrender to God's will and way in our lives. Basically it means to stop fighting God - to surrender. How surrendered is your heart today to God's will and way?

In Jesus' day, the word praus, which He used when He told His listeners "Blessed are the meek," was a very familiar word.

Doctors used it in describing a soothing medicine they gave patients to relieve their fever and quiet them down.
Sailors used it to describe a gentle breeze.
Farmers used it to describe a colt that had been broken. Every colt has to be broken or it can't fulfill its function on the farm.

What do these three things - medicine, wind, a colt - have in common? Power!

Medicine has the power to work in the body to calm nerves, kill germs, strengthen organs and promote healing.
Wind also has power. Anybody that lives in our state sure remembers the power of the winds of Hurricane Katrina!
And horses - if you've ever watched a rodeo and seen a bucking bronco, you know it's a powerful animal.

But that power has to be under control!

The proper dose of medicine can promote healing - but an overdose might kill.
A summer breeze might be delightful - but a hurricane only destroys.
A broken horse can both work for and give pleasure to its master - but a horse out of control is dangerous.

Power under control is meekness and the Bible is full of examples of powerful men displaying meekness.

Like Abraham when his herdsmen and Lot's quarreled over grazing rights - Abraham was the elder. He was the one with the family power. Yet he gave Lot first choice of the best land. Because Abraham was surrendered to God, he was not afraid to submit to Lot and let Lot have first choice. Abraham knew his own inheritance was secure in the Lord and no decision his nephew made could rob him of what God had for him.
Like Joseph - His brothers had sold in into slavery. He had been put into prison after being falsely accused by his master's wife. But one day Joseph was elevated to become prime minister of Egypt. He had the power to take revenge against his former master's wife, but there is no record that he ever did. Later, when his brothers showed up, begging for food, Joseph could have refused them or punished them; but he did not. He had power over them, but he kept his power under control.
Like David - In 1 Samuel 24 King Saul blundered into a cave where David and his men were hiding. With one stroke of his sword David could have killed Saul and taken the throne. In fact, some of David's men urged him to do just that. David had the power to kill Saul, but he kept his power under control.
Like Jesus - Jesus is always our ultimate and greatest example of meekness. 1 Peter 2:23 "When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly."

The secret to meekness is in surrender. Is your heart surrendered fully to God. Do you fully trust His will and His way in your life - even if it hurts?

Do you know how much power you have, sweet sister? You have physical power. You have mental power. You have emotional power. You even have spiritual power. Think about it. Are you keeping all this power under control? Better yet, have you surrendered your heart with all its desires and ambitions to God's control?