“Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5). The essence of meekness is strength restrained. The meek know and understand their own power and can see the consequences to themselves and others if they give into the temptation to waste their strength on battles that are not absolutely necessary. Aristotle said, "Anyone can become angry -- that is easy. But to be angry with the right person, to the right degree, at the right time, for the right purpose, and in the right way -- this is not easy." Fools rush in, dragged by their pride and the violence of their unchecked anger and end up multiplying their problems. The meek don't have their sense of identity wrapped up in the opinions of others. They can have their names dragged through the mud and bear with equanimity a storm of lies and false accusations because they are confident that the truth will win out in the end. They won't be baited into wading into the mud to wrestle with pigs because they know that they'll only get mud all over themselves, and besides the pigs like it. While the insecure and the cruel are wasting their strength in pointless struggles for the dominion of petty tyrannies that are doomed to collapse just as soon as the last of their strength is spent, the meek are husbanding and reserving their energy and resources. And while the cowardly and the servile are are eagerly surrendering their integrity and their power to those who appear stronger in the name of the greater good, the meek recognize that they can't run from the storm, that there are some fights that can't be avoided, that there are causes for which their swords must be unsheathed and defended to the last breath. The overly domineering and the overly submissive will break against and devour each other, and when they have all vanished in a cloud of mutual destruction and the dust has settled, only the meek will be left standing. That is why they shall inherit the Earth, because they will be the only ones left. Husbands and wives who are meek find that their marriages and families are more important than being right or getting even and inherit a lifelong partnership when others who are not meek have long since filed for divorce. Companies that are meek and do not sacrifice long-term stability for a quick buck are still around when those who have long since killed the golden goose and strip mined their future to satisfy the present demands of favorable quarterly reports have disappeared. If we try to cut corners or justify our means or give into our impulses, then our pride and our impatience and our foolishness will destroy us in the end and everything that we have worked for will be inherited by those who let patience and temperance and restraint guide their decisions. On the other hand, if we will humbly and meekly submit to our Father's plan for us and pay no heed to the mocking and pointing fingers of those too cowardly to live up to their full potential, then sooner or later our patience will be rewarded and we will receive all that the Father has.
