Numbers 12:3 (Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earh.)

Psalms 22:26 The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the lord that seek him: your heart shall live forever.

Matthew 11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

2 Corinthians 10:1 Now I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, ...

Matthew 21:12-17 12 And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, 13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

Psalms 149:4 For the Lord taketh pleasure in His people: He will beautify the meek with salvation.

I love Ps. 149:4, "He will beautify the meek with salvation>" In my life, this has been one of the hardest fruits to attain. Being meek has not come easy for me. I used to have a bad temper that took me many years of prayer and practice to overcome. But meekness is attainable. Some believe that, once you accept Jesus as your Savior, the Fruit of the Spirit naturally follows but that is not so. God doesn't just instantly bestow the fruit of the Spirit on each believer the moment we are saved. Some of these attributes may come easy for me but you may have to struggle with them. Yet, while I had to pray and work to attain meekness, that may not be a problem for you. I Peter 3:4 says that a wife with a quiet spirit is of great price in the sight of God. (I had to struggle with that one, too!)

Jesus set the example of having a meek spirit about Him, yet he had a boldness to speak the truth. As I have said before, being meek doesn't mean we have to lay down and let the world walk all over us. Jesus stated in the scripture above that He was meek in heart, yet He entered into the temple and overthrew the moneychanger's tables and cast them out. I believe that's called righteous indignation. We can be meek and still stand up for what we believe in, retain our 'backbone' and even fight for our country and protect our families. I know there are some religious sects that believe we shouldn't fight back but always 'turn the other cheek' no matter what, but I believe there is sense and nonsense in all things. I believe Christians should avoid a conflict of any kind if at all possible, but if someone is threatening bodily harm to a child or a loved one, I will defend that child or loved one with my life if necessary. And if I didn't, I believe God would hold me accountable. I will also stand up for my belief in Jesus Christ - to the death if necessary. For without Him, there is no life. Yet, except for these extreme circumstances, we are to be meek people. Always turning the other cheek if possible.

The best way I know to practice meekness is to step back. When the world gets in your face and the desire in your heart seems to be to retaliate, just take a step back, take a second look at the situation. Ask yourself the question, "What would Jesus do?" He was meek and gentle, would He retaliate? Moses was meek, what would he do? Just about every time he had a problem, he took it to God. The one time the bible records he didn't go to God, he wound up killing someone and fleeing into the desert for forty years! (Ex. 2:12) I've felt like doing both before - haven't you?

It says in Matthew 5:5 and in Psalms 37:11 that the meek will inherit the earth. Meekness is a strange behavior to the world. By standing back and giving in to the demanding ways of the overbearing, without rancor or returning abuse, you will one day reap the return of all that God has laid up in store for the meek!