The Importance of Gentleness

I'm reading through the Psalms and this morning I'm in chapter 6.  I've read these verses so many times, yet today God used them to speak to me about how I deal with my children when they've done something wrong.  Verses 1 & 2 say, "O LORD, rebuke me not in thine anger, neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure.  Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am weak..." 
I shouldn't "rebuke" my children in anger or "chasten them in hot displeasure" because they are weak- mentally, emotionally and physically.  Angry words wound deeply and how often I've been the cause of those wounds.  I don't want that to continue!  "A soft answer turneth away wrath..." 
 I am seeing more and more just how important GENTLENESS is.  Psalms 18:35 says, "...and thy gentleness hath made me great."  Gentleness speaks to the heart.  It draws one to a peaceable place and opens the ears of the heart.  God has been working in me concerning anger and He is patiently bringing me to a new place in my life where anger doesn't reign supreme!  How thankful I am for the Lord's love and grace!!  I want to be controlled by His gentlenss and His mercy.  I don't want to overlook wrong, but to deal with it in the right way.  I want my children's view of God to be a loving view.  I want them to see the Lord's control of me and my emotions. 

The other night I couldn't sleep so I went out to read a book called "Creative Correction".  In this book the author has sections she calls the "Toolbox".  They are verses or stories that one can use to help in the various situations that arise in a day.  I was reading about anger. The verse to read was Proverbs 10:12, "Hatred stirreth up strife: but love covereth all sins."  I wondered what "covereth" meant in the Strong's concordance.  There were various words mentioned but "overwhelm" stuck out at me.   It made me think that if you respond in gentleness, that gentleness could overwhelm the anger that may have occured instead.  I can make my children obey, but if they aren't obeying from the heart they're really not obeying.  I want to be gentle and merciful and pray that by God's grace and control my children will obey from the heart and that's how I want to respond to the Lord as well.
I also, as well as my children, need to learn to hear God's voice in the authority's voice.  If there is someone over me-I need to remember that the Lord wants me to obey and so it is HIS voice I need to listen to and obey not the person speaking to me.  This is hard to do, but when simply obeying the Lord becomes more and more a habit, I believe it will be easier to do. 

These thought from the Lord have been a blessing to me and a huge help too.  God is so good.  I'm so thankful that He loves me in spite of who I am.  I'm thankful He gave me my children.  I love them so much.  I want to love them better-they deserve it!!  What a great, loving and gentle heavenly Father we have.  "Thank You, Dear Lord for being God."