Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: Meek (07/18/24)
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TITLE: Suffer Me | Previous Challenge Entry
By Lois Eaton
07/21/24 -
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A true story:
“Gentle Jesus, meek and mild
Look upon a little child
Pity my simplicity
Suffer me to come to Thee”.
They are the words of the hymn that defined my walk with God as a child.
Pity my simplicity.
God felt sorry for me because I was so simple. Deficient. Inadequate.
Children were simple. We knew that to mean we were mentally deficient. All of us, but especially we girls. Everyone knew that God never created an intelligent woman. Women were totally dependent on men to do their thinking for them. It was very confusing. I knew some women who seemed very good at thinking – and some men who were not!
And then the bit about Jesus suffering us! I didn’t want Him to suffer me. I wanted Him to love me. Why was that too much to ask? Wasn’t He supposed to be love? So why did He make an exception for children?
He said, “Let the little children come to Me.” Why did He say that if He had to suffer us? It was as though I was two people in one body. One me He could love but the other me He had to suffer. Very confusing.
Then the bit about Him being gentle, meek and mild – always, no matter the circumstances.
I got really brave one day, and pointed out that driving the money changers out of the temple courtyard was not a mild, meek thing to do.
I didn’t get into trouble the way I expected to, but it was made very clear to me that I should not expect to understand such things as I was just a girl – and a young one at that. Some things I should leave to my betters, (male) who perfectly understood the mind of God.
Silent submission. That was what the meek and mild Jesus demonstrated when He was on trial. If that was the right way to behave for the Son of God, then how much more appropriate was it for little girls? Stop asking silly questions.
I stopped asking questions of men, but I could not stop asking them of God. I wished I could stop, but the questions kept on coming.
The meek shall inherit the earth. I didn’t know why that was so important, but God made it clear to me that it was important. When I looked out at the world, I did not see the meek inheriting the world – quite the opposite.
Then I discovered Revelation 19:11. He is coming back in victory – NOT mindless submission. I wanted to tell everyone but was too scared to. The image of Yeshua returning fully prepared for a battle that He would win so easily was not one of helpless meek submission. He was the victor!
My children NEVER sang that hymn.
To be meek before God is not an indication of mental stupidity, or mindless submission. It is a sign of faith so strong that God is permanently enthroned in every thought and deed. It is a sign that we truly want the perfect will of God in our lives. It is a sign that we trust God to the point where we do not need to panic when things go wrong. We can trust God when we are abused. We can be at peace about whether or not to defend ourselves when injustice is reigning because we know that OUR GOD REIGNS. And if we are called of God to defend ourselves, we can do so in faith, with an attitude of forgiveness toward our abusers.
And the meek will indeed inherit the land, when Our Lord Yeshua (Jesus) returns to set up His kingdom here on Earth.
Come, Lord Yeshua. Please come - quickly.
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