What do washing machines, dish soap, a grizzly bear named “Ben,” and you have in common? You, the bear, and those other items all can be gentle.

St. Paul encouraged the members of one of his churches, “Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near” (Philippians 4:5).

Too often we associate gentleness with being a wimp. That is not true. Washing machines can rip clothes to shreds. Soaps can irritate skin. Bears can maul people. And just turn on the news to see what destruction human beings can do.

Nevertheless, we can be gentle. We can learn to be unselfish and considerate in all we do.

Think what the world would be like if everyone showed unselfish consideration for others! There would be no road rage. Children wouldn’t fight over a particular toy. Customers and cashiers wouldn’t stall checkout lines by bickering over sale prices. Divorce might even come to a halt.

Paul gives us the why and the how of being gentle. “The Lord is near,” he says.

Christmas may be a month away, but the joy and the attitude don’t have to wait. The Lord is right here with us now.

With a word Jesus could calm a raging sea or cause a tree to wither. Yet he never failed to heal the sick, preach good news to the poor, and offer forgiveness to the worst of sinners.

Jesus offers us that same gentle, unselfish consideration when he says in both words and actions: “I love you. That is why I came to earth. That is why I lived and died for you. And I want you to love others in return.”

There was a Christian man whose very presence was a visual definition of words like strong, tough, and thoroughly masculine. Yet for twenty-five years he spent nearly every Sunday afternoon leading a worship service for a hundred mentally retarded women at the state mental hospital.

That man let his gentleness be evident to all. Do you desire that same gentle spirit in your life? See and hear how as you worship and study God’s Word with us!