What was being advertised? I’m not sure. Was it facial cream? Was it a new line of luxuriously soft sleepwear? The product didn’t make an impression on me. It didn’t matter. The tagline stirred my heart and snagged my brain. “Go Gently Into the New Year,” it said.
I thought of my Savior, Jesus Whose birth we just celebrated. How gently He came into the world and lived His life in lowliness and humbleness. And when He left to go to His Father, His own gentle Spirit came to indwell every believer.
How silently His Spirit came. How silently He works, gently nudging us to be more like the Savior.
“Go gently into the New Year,” He speaks to me right now.
Many will go into the New Year with loud proclamations, with carry-over resentments from the past year. Some will go into the New Year with opinions and strong arguments, with voices of ridicule or anger. They will be heard for their repetitions and voluminous words, but the grace of our Lord Jesus will not fall on the ears of the hearer.
One of the fruits of the Spirit is gentleness, right along with self-control and the others listed in Galatians 5:26 and 27.
In instructing His disciples Jesus said,
“Learn of me, for I am gentle and humble of heart and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28-30
Yes! We want that rest for our souls, don’t we? Why is there is so much unrest among us and within us? Our hearts are in a turmoil and we don’t know why. But we continue on in our boisterous, “in-your-face” attitudes and we wonder why there’s no peace in our hearts. We haven’t been listening to our Master when He set a pattern for us and called us to be like Him in His gentleness.
Someone is reading this and going into the New Year wondering how she will ever forgive the wrongs done to her this past year. If she ever sees that person again, she will give him a piece of her mind. But the Lord urges her to “Go gently” in her words and actions. Not because the offense was insignificant. No, but because that is the nature of the Father and He knows the pain we suffer. The outcome will be best if she acts like her Father God and she will then be able to say with the Psalmist
“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
The apostle Paul entreats us to
“walk worthy of the calling in which we were called, with all lowliness and gentleness with longsuffering,” Ephesians 4:1
This gentleness is needed when we’ve had a tough day and the pharmacist is taking too long to fill out our prescription. It is needed when your son comes home with an F on his report card. “Let your gentleness be known to all men,” we are encouraged, “For the Lord is at hand.” Philippians 4:5 The Lord sees your heart and your responses to life’s challenges do not go unnoticed by God.
Have you ever wondered what you could “give” the Lord that would be something He would consider very valuable and He would highly treasure? Well, this is it: A
“gentle and a quiet spirit,” is very precious in the sight of God.” I Peter 3:4
As you meditate on the following verses, ask yourself if the Lord is wanting you to “Go Gently Into the New Year.” For further study go to: Titus 3:1 and 2 I Timothy 6:11 and 12
By Gwen Klontz
used by permission