Victory In The Wilderness - Helen RobertsНамуна

Self-Control

I’m not sure about you, but discipline and self-control are not my favorite words! They seem to be about restriction, about going without – and we live in a culture that encourages us to believe that we can have it all and do whatever we want.

Paul explained to the Galatians that one of the fruits of having the Holy Spirit living within us was self-control. Self-control is a vital attribute to have, because it keeps us anchored. It enables our roots to keep growing in Christ, so that all the other fruit can flourish.

Self-control will help us to express kindness gently, goodness faithfully, love joyfully, and peace patiently. Self-control will determine what comes out of our life and also what we allow into it.

Self-control holds us back from speaking words of retaliation to our grumpy neighbor, or speaking lies about ourselves or anyone else. Self-control enables the power and love of the Holy Spirit to be on display in us for the world to see.

When I was a child, my parents bought a small hotel. If you’ve seen the classic British sitcom Fawlty Towers, you’re close to understanding what my childhood was like. Over the years, thousands of people came and went, and (before the days of electronic key cards) each guest was given the master key to their room.

Self-control is like the master key of the fruit of the Spirit. It allows us to make secure so many doors into and out of our lives. When Paul wrote to the believers in Rome, he spoke about his own struggles with self-control.

“I want to do what is right, but I can’t. I want to do what is good, but I don’t … Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 7:18-25)

The answer is Jesus Christ! Paul recognized that in the battle for self-control, the answer is always Jesus Himself.

Today, remember that because the Holy Spirit is living within you, self-control is not out of reach. Put your self-control in the hands of Jesus and let Him to be the one who helps you.