The Lost Art of Gentleness

Find True Greatness

Jun 27, 2025

“Here comes the numbing medicine. It’s just a quick pinch and a burn.”

My neck was prepped with betadine as I was about to have a needle biopsy of my thyroid mass which had grown noticeably in the last year.

My mind wandered to the thousand times I had said the same thing to my patients. I wanted them to know that I was about to inflict pain on them. What a strange job— causing pain in order to produce healing in the end.

I always wanted to be a gentle healer, but surgery is rarely gentle.

As the needle went into my neck, I was surprised at how much it actually hurt. I wanted to scream. Then the burning started to intensify as the medicine was being injected. This is unbearable! I can’t believe how bad this feels! How can pain in one part of my body paralyze me with pain, fear, and panic? Even after the numbing set in, I could still feel horrible pressure as the biopsy was done. I was exhausted afterwards.

I never minimized the pain of numbing medicine to my patients again.

God is the ultimate surgeon, cutting out the parts of us that are killing us, and replacing them with beauty and glory. Today I want to highlight that even though His work may seem painful, difficult, or even unbearable at times, He is so gentle with us.

📥Receive God’s gentleness.

Find something beautiful from nature, maybe a leaf. Look at the delicate intricacy of a flower. See the astounding variety of insects, animals, and plants. That bug you just squashed is a marvel of engineering. Look at the stars at night, and be amazed at the immensity of the galaxies. What can you learn about the Creator?

He is tender. He is detail-oriented. He is infinitely wise and creative. He sustains everything by the word of His power. He is near, and He is glorious. Ask Him to speak to you and remember that He has called you, chosen you to know Him, and given you everything you need to do that in this moment. When God takes us home to be with Him, we will know the answers to all our questions and we will agree with God that His plan was best. “He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young” (Isaiah 40:11).

Are you grieving today? He is with you and knows grief being the Man of Sorrows. Are you happy? He shares His joy with you as the cause all the good things you are enjoying. Are you anxious? He made the sun rise this morning, so He will work in your life. Are you angry about something? Hear Him gently reminding you that you are weak and small, and He is infinitely great and gracious and compassionate.

🔗See the link between gentleness and greatness: “Your gentleness made me great” (Psalm 18:35).

I used to believe that gentleness was desirable only if I could still be productive and effective at my job. I saw the good of healing as far greater than the good of gentleness. In surgery, this mindset made sense, but I incorrectly transmitted this onto God. In God’s economy, gentleness is greatness. Gentleness and strength go together in the kingdom of God. When you read Psalm 18, you see that David is praising God for all the strength God gave him, and at the same time, God saves a humble people (Psalm 18:25-30). Jesus’ gentleness and greatness are seen best on the cross, when the Lamb of God was silently led to the slaughter (Isaiah 53:7).

Ask God for His perspective on your situation. How can you bring gentleness and faith into the situation, rather than human strength, effort, and achievement. How can we remember that the battle is the Lord’s and He has given salvation, not ourselves?

Redefine greatness as dependence on God. Greatness is belonging to God, being known by God, and making God known to others.

👆Respond in gentleness to yourself and others.

Speak kindly to yourself today. Worship God with your words. Think well of others.

You have two choices with your words: you can bless God and others in speaking life, or you can curse, complain, and compare. Read James 3, and ask God for gentleness in your speech today. Only the Holy Spirit can tame your tongue (James 3:7).

Try to fathom the greatness of God—the immense honor He has bestowed on us by adopting us into His family and calling us His own through the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus. Only God could be all-powerful and meek, gentle, and humble at the same time.

You can be a gentle healer when you see that God is our gentle Healer. He won’t fail.

Worship His greatness, and thank Him for the greatness of gentleness. Only God could invent this! Only God has the wisdom we need for a gentle and great life.

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
-James 3:17-18