“Blessed are the gentle, for they will inherit the earth.” Matthew 5:5 (NASB)

The word gentle here comes from the Greek word praus, which means mild, humble, meek, gentleness of spirit, and meekness towards God. It means we are wholly relying on God rather than our own strength and abilities.

As a woman, I was brought back to the scripture in 1 Peter 3:3-4, which says:

Your adornment must not be merely the external—braiding the hair, wearing gold jewelry, or putting on apparel; but it should be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.

As I read this verse, which I had read a million times over the years, I found myself fixating on a word I hadn’t noticed before. “Imperishable”

Of course, I had to look up this word to understand its meaning. Merriam Webster defines imperishable as not perishable, subject to decay, enduring, or occurring forever.

The Beatitudes repeatedly reveal that our hearts are God’s most important possession. I wrote about this in my book Created to Relate: Living Beyond Religion. Religion keeps us in the mode of doing things for all the wrong reasons or with the wrong attitudes. It is that relationship with Jesus that aligns us with His heart.

Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is comfortable, and My burden is light.”Matthew 11:28-30

God’s heart is gentle and humble, and we are to become more and more like Him as we grow in our relationship with Him.

This quality is imperishable, and those who are humble and gentle will inherit the earth.

It can be hard to live humbly and with a gentle spirit. Our flesh and pride get in the way. How do we develop that Christ-like humility and gentle spirit?

Young children are a great example. Most children look up to their parents and want to be like them. They hang around and watch what they are doing, and learn from how they do the things they do. They spend time following them around and often copying what they do and say. They ask lots of “how” and “why” questions and put those answers in their hearts.

Are we seeking God in our days? Are we taking time to follow Him around and learn from Him? Are we asking questions and allowing Him to lead us to the right answers?

Life is not always easy. People are not always kind, cooperative, humble, or gentle toward us. How do we respond?

We can not live in humility and with gentleness without the Lord’s help. This starts with that first Beatitude and recognizing our need for a Savior. It begins with acknowledging that when I follow my flesh, I can be full of pride, and I don’t always want to be nice to those who aren’t being nice to me, or who have left deep scars in my heart.

But I want to live with Jesus’ humble and gentle heart. I look up to Him, so I spend time with Him and follow Him around. I take Him into my days, and I pray for help when I need it. I ask Him lots of questions, and when I mess up, I repent and ask Him to help me up.

The one who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son. Revelation 21:7

I pray that we would follow Jesus with our whole hearts, allowing Him to cultivate that humble and gentle heart, giving us all we need to live as overcomers in this world, that we might inherit the earth and all He has planned for us, living forever and ever with Him, our Heavenly Father.