Wednesday, January 22, 2014 "Self Control: A Mighty Fruit of the Spirit"

¹¹ For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. ¹² It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, ¹³ while we wait for the blessed hope-the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, ¹⁴ who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. Titus 2:11-14

Do you struggle with saying too much? Eating too much? Do you struggle with doing whatever feels right to you regardless of the consequences? Our natural impulse is to self gratify while our instinct is to "fight back" but when we act on these things, it means we are lacking self control, which is a fierce and mighty fruit of the Spirit. Proverbs 16:32 tells us , "Better a patient person than a warrior, those with self-control than those who take a city". Patience and perseverance are acts of Godliness. Scriptures tell us this leads to a holy life. When we guard our tongue and are slow to anger and slow to speak, we are exercising self control. I am one to "speak my mind" but have found as I grow in Him, it is not wise therefore I am working on listening more and speaking less. It often means I do not defend myself against someone who trespasses against me for I believe grace trumps words. We must learn to be mature with our words and actions and not always have to "have the last word" or always "have to be right". I allow the Lord to fight my battles against my enemies. So if you struggle like me with controlling yourself, meditate on 2 Peter 1:3-8 and allow His promises to penetrate your soul.