I’m a passionate person by nature. If I have a vision for something then I latch on and don’t let go. For most of my life I was ruled by my passions and emotions. I used my feelings as my guide.  Many times I let reason fall to the wayside.  When life fell apart, as it inevitably would, I chalked it up to my artistic side.  I would always have an excuse.  In reality though, I lived the life of someone who had no intention of growing up. There is a word for people like this – immature.  I lacked was any semblance of self-control, and I was not alone. Let me be the first to say that I’m still in the process of working on self-control. But, once you and I gain control over ourselves we have the key to a clear-sighted and foresighted life. We can look into our future with clarity and peace!

Self-control is defined as “the act of denying yourself; controlling your impulses… the trait of resolutely controlling your own behavior.”¹ Wow!  That sounds like a dull life, doesn’t it? It sounds like it takes all the spontaneity out of life, the spark, the fire, the passion, the…well, you get my point. In all actuality when we learn self-control, or the act of controlling our impulses and behavior is what gives us the freedom to be spontaneous and follow our passions. How can that can be? How can self-control lead to absolute freedom?

In her Bible study, Seven Celebrations of the Soul, Kathy Troccoli speaks of building “boundaries for freedom.”  She says about boundaries:

“So often I have to get past the waves of my own feelings to get to the truths of God’s shoreline. God definitely draws lines in the sand. He doesn’t do it to imprison us but to liberate our souls.”

These boundaries, set by God, implemented in our lives through self-control are there to put down the waves of our own sinful, selfish human nature and make way for God to work in our lives. Many times we think we are being deprived if we choose self-control over those things our human nature desires. We forget that God wants nothing but the best for us just as a father wants the best for His children.

We need to understand the power that we harness when we live with self-control. Dr. Norman Vincent Peale said, “The cyclone derives its powers from a calm center. So does a person.” I’m talking about laying aside our self-centered desires and grabbing hold of the power of God. That power that remains calm when the storms of life swell up around us. Would you rather be caught up in the storm or walk peacefully in the midst of it?

The Bible has much to say about self-control. Galatians 5:22-23 says that it is an attribute of the fruit of the Spirit: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” (NKJV)

So this is the fruit (or the evidence) of the spirit of God within you that you have self-control.  In other words, God expects you and me to have self-control just as much as He expects the apple tree to produce apples.

There is an ultimate purpose that God gives for self-control. 2 Peter 1:4-9 says:

“God made great and marvelous promises, so that his nature would become part of us.  Then we could escape our evil desires and the corrupt influences of this world. Do your best to improve your faith. You can do this by adding goodness, understanding, self-control, patience, devotion to God, concern for others, and love. If you keep growing in this way, it will show that what you know about our Lord Jesus Christ has made your lives useful and meaningful.  But if you don’t grow, you are like someone who is nearsighted or blind, and you have forgotten that your past sins are forgiven.” (HCSB)

Don’t you love it when God explains Himself? He is under no obligations to give us an explanation and there are times when he doesn’t.   Yet, when He does it’s like the ultimate light bulb moment. The “Ah – I get that now” moment. God promised that we could have His nature within us so that we could live unspoiled by the world and our own human nature. We do this by improving our faith through goodness, learning, self-control, patience, devotion, compassion and love. For what purpose? It is to make our lives useful and meaningful. For me, if my life should be anything I would hope that it would be useful and meaningful.

Tonya Lee

http://www.tonyalee.org