Wise as Serpents Harmless as Doves
Gentleness is not naivety. It is wisdom wrapped in grace.
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Esther 4:16 · ESV
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Matthew 10:16 · ESV
Monday
Jesus said — "Be ye therefore wise as serpents and harmless as doves." Gentleness is not naivety. It is wisdom wrapped in grace.
This week we want you to go on a discovery. Open your Bible and find one person or story in the Old Testament and one scripture in the New Testament that demonstrates gentleness — even if the word is never used. Begin each morning with this prayer — "Lord, as we close this month of Gentleness we come to You with grateful hearts. You have shown us through David, through Paul, through Your own example what it means to be gentle. Let what we have learned not stay in our heads but live in our hands and our hearts. Amen." OT Example: Esther — she did not demand. She fasted, prepared and approached the king with wisdom and grace. Her gentleness was her strategy. NT Example: Colossians 3:12 — "Put on therefore as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering." Now find your own. Write them in your journal and bring them with you this week.
Wednesday
Gentleness shows up throughout Scripture — in people, in stories, in commands. Sometimes it is named. Sometimes it is simply lived. But it is always present wherever God is at work.
What did you find in your discovery this week? Share your OT person or story and your NT scripture in your journal — and explain why you chose them.
Friday
Lord, as we close this month of Gentleness we come to You with grateful hearts. You have shown us through David, through Paul, through Your own example what it means to be gentle. Let what we have learned not stay in our heads but live in our hands and our hearts. Amen.
This weekend — share what you discovered this week with someone. A friend, a family member, someone in your Bible Study group. What God reveals to us is never just for us.
- What did your discovery this week reveal about how gentleness shows up in unexpected places in Scripture?
- How does this week connect to what we studied this month?
- Looking back over September — where has God grown gentleness in you that was not there before?