Gentleness 2

Sadie is a St. Barnard who has seven puppies, three girls and four boys.

The puppies are rambunctious, except one.  One of the pups named, Pee Wee, is the smallest and his leg doesn’t work well. His left back leg is stiff and shorter than his other three. Pee Wee can walk but it's a slower and painful process. Most of the time, Pee Wee keeps close to his mom, Sadie, instead of running and playing with his siblings.

Sadie realized something was different with Pee Wee right after he was born. She made sure he had enough milk and was warm. Seven puppies is a lot to take care of, but Sadie gives Pee Wee extra attention. Most dogs are good mothers and Sadie is one of the best. She is gentle, kind, and loving.

When the puppies were a few days old, they walked and tried to run everywhere, as long as they didn’t get out of sight of Sadie. If they wondered too far away, Sadie barked a soft short warning. The pups ran back. Their legs were wobbly and they fell a few times or collided with another pup. Sadie smiled a motherly smile, knowing they would grow out of their clumsiness. Pee Wee wasn’t clumsy because he moved slower and took smaller steps. He stayed near her most of the time.

Sadie is gentle as she encourages Pee Wee to move around and walk. It would be easier for Pee Wee to just sit and lie around. Her instincts tell her Pee Wee needs to keep moving. If he doesn’t exercise he may get worse. Sadie loves him and wants him to get stronger. Through the pain he walks. Some days, his leg works better for him and is not so painful.

Sadie teaches her other pups to be kind and gentle with Pee Wee. At first the pups pushed him out of the way when they wanted to eat. That’s when Sadie gently nudged them back and scooted Pee Wee closer to the food. Persistence on Sadie’s part helped the puppies get the message.

There were no favorites. Sadie made sure the pups didn’t feel like Sadie loved Pee Wee more. She loved them all equally. Out of necessity she spent more time with Pee Wee but the other pups never lacked for attention and love.

St. Bernard’s are known to be smart and gentle. Sadie passes them all. She is the most gentle of dogs and the best mom Pee Wee could have wished for.

Pee Wee’s siblings are kind and gentle to him. They learned how from Sadie. To this day, they get along well. All of them spend time with Pee Wee encouraging and loving him. Pee Wee is older now and his limp is barely discernible, I think it’s because of the gentle guidance of his mom.

Gentleness is a great quality. The Lord wants us to be gentle. Gentleness is a gift from the Holy Spirit that He has given us.We should be gentle to others, especially those younger, smaller, or those that have a difficulty. How is your gentleness?

Memorize: Galatians 5: 22-23 But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, GENTLENESS, self-control. Against such there is no law.

Verses in NKJV unless otherwise stated.

 

Gentleness

Charles was a big strong boy. At ten years old, he was taller than his classmates. He was taller than any kid in his whole school. His voice was louder and deeper sounding than most boys. He sounded like a grown up. Charles, being bigger and stronger, could have bullied people around. He could have made people afraid of him. Charles wasn’t like that, though. He was gentle, kind, and considerate to others.

He said, “Yes, ma’am" and "Yes, sir" to adults. He played fair and nicely with other children. Smaller kids were not afraid of him. They liked him because he was nice to everybody. He helped the younger and smaller children. In the grocery store, he would reach things too high for the moms and grandmas.

Charles had a great way with animals. He lived on a farm a few miles from town. On the farm were chickens, a cow, a horse, and a pig. Also there were cats and dogs. The cats caught mice, and the dogs kept strangers away. The cats and dogs were also fun to play with. One special dog, Mike, followed Charles around everywhere he went.

Everyday Charles had chores to do, which included feeding and watering the animals. Gathering eggs and mucking, or cleaning out, the horse stall was also part of his chores.

Charles woke up very early in the morning to feed the animals and gather the eggs. Every day after school, he needed to make sure there was mud for the pig and that the horse stall was mucked out with new hay put down on the dirt floor.

The animals loved him because he was gentle with them. He spoke softly to them. The horse, Raven, nodded his head when Charles came up to the stall. Raven would step back to let Charles in. Raven softly whinnied until Charles hugged him and rubbed the long bridge of his nose. Sometimes Charles came in after school with an apple or carrot. On special days, he gave Raven a lump, or cube, of sugar. Raven enjoyed theses treats. 

The pig, Frank, loved him because Charles always talked nicely to him as he sprayed him with water from the hose. Charles was always careful to spray lightly with not too much pressure. Frank love the mud Charles made for him to wallow in. It felt cool and gooey. Charles would pick up a bucket of food, which consisted of the family's leftovers, and pour it in the food trough. It looked nasty and smelled yucky, but Frank, being a pig, loved it and would oink his pleasure.

One day, one of the chickens was walking funny. I think chickens walk funny all the time with their head bobbing with each step. Have you ever tried to walk like a chicken? Try it sometime with your arms tucked under with your hands in your armpits. Lift your legs high and straight and don’t forget to bob your head! Ha, I bet you look silly!

This particular chicken, Buffy, walked with a slight limp. Charles was a giant next to the little chicken. Because Charles was gentle, the chicken trusted him and was not afraid. Buffy was a girl, or hen. Her job was to lay eggs. When Charles got near Buffy, she sat down and let him pick her up. He carried her into the barn to a work bench. He set her down gently and carefully felt her leg. It had a scratch near the claws where there are no feathers. Charles gently wrapped a strip of cloth around it and attached it securely without hurting her.

Charles’ papa was watching the whole thing from up in the hay loft. Papa came down as Charles picked up Buffy. Papa said, “Charles that was a kind and gentle thing you just did. I’ve never seen a hen sit still for something like that. Normally there are feathers flying all over, and it takes two people. You are gentle, and the hen trusts you. I’ve noticed all the animals love you and obey you better than they do me, because you are so gentle. I’m proud of you.”

Charles smiled and stood a little taller, if that was possible. He took Buffy back to the coop and laid her on her nest.

Charles is a good example of someone being gentle. You and I need to be gentle with others, not just animals. The Lord Jesus wants us to be gentle. The Bible lists ways we need to be toward others. We see this list in Galatians 6:22-23. One of those things listed is gentleness.

We especially need to be gentle to those smaller and weaker than us. Do you have a younger brother or sister? The Lord wants us to be gentle to them. If you are picking them up or helping them with something, remember you are bigger and stronger and need to be careful and gentle. There might be a grandparent or someone older in your life that you need to be gentle with. You can help them by carrying things for them, opening doors for them, and treating them with gentleness. Do you have a pet in your home? Remember to be gentle with them, and they will love you more and trust you better. Think about what Jesus wants you to do, and act that way with others.

Memorize: Philippians 4:5a Let your gentleness be known to all men.

Verses in NKJ unless otherwise stated.