Self-control is one of the Fruits of the Spirit, and one of its greatest benefits to our lives is how it keeps us going even when we want to quit, to let go, or to take the easy route. In short, it gives us the strength to continue.
“So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober.” (1 Thessalonians 5:6)
When I was young, I’d often have sleepovers with my cousins. This was about the most fun I could have imagined and when you only have one night, the last thing you want to do is actually sleep!
But there would inevitably come a point when we couldn’t stay up any longer. One by one, we’d drop into exhausted sleep after what felt like hours of whispered conversation and giggles.
Oh, the fight to stay awake though. That willfulness that had us exerting all our young self-control on making our eyelids stay up when our bodies were aching for rest.
Self-control is a powerful thing. It’s our inner strength that pushes us past exhaustion. Past endurance. And past the voice inside that sinuously whispers about the easy road just over there…
As Christians, self-control is what gives us the ability to go against the tide of worldly priorities, to work harder instead of trying for shortcuts that are steeped in dishonesty or that hurt others. It’s what gives us the strength to go on when our weakness cries for a break.
Is self-control rooted in self?
Every morning, I run. Early on, I learned that when I bargain with myself to go just a little farther, to not quit, I usually don’t last long beyond my basic endurance.
What I learned was that I could run faster, longer, and with less strain when I leaned not on my own self-control and motivation, or on my own strength.
When I asked God to help me have a good run and to be strong, that’s when I ran the hardest, the longest.
My self-control can be pretty strong, but it’s rooted in a weak body and weak heart. I am a flawed being riddled with lots of weaknesses. But God is neither flawed nor weak.
He is strong and powerful. Even lending a thimbleful of his might to me is more than I would use in a lifetime. So when I call on self-control, I’m not calling on my own strength, but on the strength God gives me for the race I am in.
We are all in a race, though not the kind with mile markers and shirt numbers. We are in a race against time. To use the lifespan God has given us to walk the path he has hewn for us. And as we walk that path with God, we are heading not for a finish line, but a continuation line.
We are not trying to get to the end. We are heading for the next stage of life, the eternal portion alongside our God.
As you go through your week, think about how self-control is not just from you. It’s powered by God. And it gives you the strength to continue fulfilling your life purpose, even as others fall asleep and do not hear the call of their loving Father.
The call to walk beside Him all the way home.
Have a blessed Monday!
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