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Back in February a message was shared our local church, Seeds Uniting Church, in the service about fasting. Here are some of the notes that I took during the service…

1. Don’t become so full of the world, that you aren’t hungry for God.
2. What are you so full of, that you aren’t hungry for God?
3. When you say “NO” to something, you need to fill that space with something else, something better for you …
4. Do you view the Bible and God through the world, or do you view the world through the Bible and God?

I don’t know about you, but there are sometimes that I feel like I miss out on the main point of a sermon or teaching, but God uses that time to teach me something else instead…

Like many people do, I use my phone as my alarm clock. This can be “dangerous” since as soon as I pick up my phone to turn off, or snooze, my alarm, I have instant access to social media, news, and email. That can be useful for finding out things like what the weather will be during the day, but it can also be a HUGE distraction…

I am challenged by the fourth point that I wrote down from the service, am I viewing the world through God and the Bible, or am I viewing God and the Bible through the world?

By starting my day with social media and news from the world, how am I setting myself up for the day?

This reality has was a bit of a revelation for me at that time. I know that social media and some news can trigger my anxiety, and distract me during the day. There has to be a better way to start the day…

The last thing that I wrote on that page of notes from the service was this:

Start each day with a Bible verse, not social media / email / etc.

Upon getting home that day I set-up the Bible App on my phone to pop up with the “Verse of the Day” every day at 7:00 am. It doesn’t seem like a big thing, but it is now the first thing I see on the phone in the morning after the alarm. Although small, it helps to put me in a better frame of mind each day.

Hebrews 12:2 Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith…

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Today on the missionary coach show we’ll be talking about Matthew 5:5:

Mat: 5:5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

In full time christian missions since 1999 I am your missionary coach, Bill Hutchison. Thanks for tuning in …

I’ve always taken those verses for granted, and never thought a lot about them. The thing is though, they are quite profound statements. When I think of someone who is “meek” I think of someone cowering in a corner. A “meek” person to me is someone who is trying to hide from the reality that is before him, someone who is a coward.

Jordan Peterson explains it differently than I have thought of it before. His definition of “meek” is someone who chooses to withhold their strength for the sake of peace. Someone who is strong, competent, and armed for the world.

Here is how he describes it …

“Those who have weapons and know how to use them, but still keep them sheathed, will inherit the earth.”

I like that description! It adds so much more depth and excitement to when Jesus tells us that “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth”, and it instills confidence in what he know and have in Christ.

That said, it almost sounds too good to be true, that definition of “meek”, so I decided to do some more research into it. I want it to be true, but is it?

Different Translations

To start with I thought I would compare how the verse is presented in different translations of the Bible. Most stick with the “meek” translation, but there are a few that translate it differently”

• “The gentle are blessed, for they will inherit the earth.” (HCSB Holman Christian Standard Bible)
• “Blessed are the humble, for they will inherit the earth.” (Christian Standard Bible CSB)

Meek Definitions

If we look at the specific word that is most commonly translated to meek, the word used in the original Greek is ““praus” (prah-oos)”. There are a few different definitions that can be found for that word, including:

• gentle or gentleness
• humble
• a horse that had been broken-in or trained for battle
• a calm temper of mind, not easily provoked
• the gentleness of strength

The Webster Dictionary defines “meek” as:

1. Mild of temper, soft, gentle, not easily provoked or irritated, yielding, given to forbearance under injuries.
2. Appropriately humble in an evangelical sense; submissive to the divine will; not proud, self-sufficient or refractory; not peevish and apt to complain of divine dispensations.

Thayer’s Lexicon defines it as:

1. Mildness of disposition, gentleness of spirit, meekness

HELPS Word-studies says:

1. Displaying the right blend of force and reserve (gentleness)
2. Avoids unnecessary harshness, yet without compromising or being slow to use necessary force

Other Uses of Meek

We can also look at what could be meant by they word by seeing where else it is used:

• Mat 11, 29 – Christ says, “Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest to your souls.”
  or
  “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek (praus) and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.”
• James 3:13 – Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom
• Num 12:3 – Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.
• Ps. 37:11 – But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace

Now, what can we deduce from those other versus of the same word…

1. Jesus describes himself as “meek”! There is no way that we can define Christ as weak. Rather he is someone of infinite power and wisdom, but who has it completely and utterly submitted to the his Father’s will.
2. We are told to act out of the meekness of wisdom, inferring that there must be wisdom and competence for their to be true meekness.
3. Moses, the same one who led the Israelites out of Egypt and through the dessert is called very meek.
4. Ps 37 talks about the people who will inherit the earth, which it calls the “meek”. It includes people who:
   • submit themselves to the Lord
   • petition the Lord
   • are not envious of the prosperous
   • wait on the Lord (rather than turning to violence or evil schemes)

Commentaries

The David Guzik commentary states that:

1. Blessed are the meek: In the vocabulary of the ancient Greek language, the meek person was not passive or easily pushed around. The main idea behind the word “meek” was strength under control, like a strong stallion that was trained to do the job instead of running wild.
2. To be meek means to show willingness to submit and work under proper authority. It also shows a willingness to disregard one’s own “rights” and privileges.

Conclusion

So after all that I would have to say that Dr Peterson’s assessment of Matthew 5:5 is pretty spot on! We are not called to be weak or cowardly. We are called to strong, confident, competent, and well trained. In addition to those things we are also called to be submitted in Christ, putting His will before our own, and waiting on Him rather than pushing through in our own strength.

Thank you for listening. You can leave comments, subscribe, support my work with Youth With A Mission, and hear other episodes of the podcast at missionarycoach.org.

Now that we have explored all of that, have another listen to Dr. Peterson on an interview with Jo Rogan about being meek …

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soIyw8aOzdY

Sources:

• Reddit
• StackExchange – Biblical Hermeneutics
• Sermon on the Mount
• Bible Hub

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A few Sunday’s ago we were encouraged by our pastor during a sermon to approach the new year with gratitude. There are many reasons that it is beneficial for us to do this. I share some of these reasons with you, some ways that you can express gratitude, as well as some of the things that I am thankful for, in this episode of the Missionary Coach Show.

Benefits of Gratitude

According to Psychology Today there are at least 7 scientifically proven benefits of gratitude. (source)

1. Gratitude improves physical health
2. Gratitude improves psychological health
3. Gratitude enhances empathy and reduces aggression
4. Grateful people sleep better
5. Gratitude improves self esteem
6. Gratitude improves mental strength
7. Gratitude opens the door to more relationships

Ways to Express Gratefulness

1. Say grace before meals
2. Keep a Journal
   1. Write down things you are grateful for
   2. Review 30-days on and remember
3. Print and display Psalm 100 and read it once a week
4. Turn of for corporate worship
5. Increase your offering
6. Take every opportunity to thank the people around you
7. Recall someone from your past and express your gratefulness to them

Psalm 100

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his[a];
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Something else was shared that I had never really thought of before, and that was that:

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and hot opening it.