Growth Weekly - Self-Control
For this post, I continue our discovery of the Fruits of the Spirit that Paul lists in Galatians 5:22-23 by examining the fruit: self-control.
"What shall we say then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires." - Romans 6:1-2, 12
The struggle is real! There is a walking trail in our neighborhood that follows along a small stream. It is surprisingly wooded and gives the impression that you're walking in the woods and not through the neighbor's backyard. When Jenny and I take Hudson back there, he always makes sure to throw a rock in the crick. He can't not do it! There is some fascination of his with finding a rock, making a good throw, and watching the resulting splash.
A lot of the time, self-control gets some rather harsh treatment; as if it's a pain to have self-control. Part of this is because we often hear the negative side to self-control: keep yourself from committing sin! This aspect of self-control is certainly important as God calls us to live our lives to a higher standard of moral excellence, which means, keeping ourselves from sin. But, what if we recognized more often the positive side of self-control: the ability to choose to do the good? Self-control isn't just not doing bad things, for it is also doing the right things. Modern psychology uses the word: conscientiousness. This is the ability to know what is beneficial or good and having the self-control to do it. As we grow into mature followers of Christ, we, with the help of the Holy Spirit, learn to not only recognize the things we should and shouldn't do, but we also learn how to actually choose consistently to do the good over the not good. I believe that with practice and prayer, we might all be encouraged in our self-control and become more like a kid who wants to throw a rock in the water - we just can't not do what is good and right!