self control

it's at the bottom of the list. love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. and all the other ones sound so much nicer. love, joy, peace - who wouldn't want those. patience is good, kindness is great, goodness and faithfulness are wonderful qualities.

then we have self control. death of the flesh. denying ourselves. it just doesn't have the same ring, you know? but it is the fruit of the same Spirit as all the others. and i'm not saying it isn't desirable. but the process of acquiring self control doesn't sound very, um, pleasant. the path to that destination is frought with all the emotions that make it so very clear that i need some self control.

when i was a kid we had a record (not tape, not cd, a record) about the fruits of the spirit: the music machine. i didn't even like the self control song.

once i had a knot in my shoe and it would not come loose
i tried and tried and pried and pried, but it would not come loose
i got so mad i kicked the door and stubbed my little toe, oh!
if only i had learned a little bit of self control.

self control is just controlling myself
it's listening to my heart
and doing what is smart
self control is the very best way to go
so i guess that i'll control myself

as if it was that easy. "i guess i'll just control myself." oh, okay. i just will. no problem. aaack!

it's not that easy. and in my experience, the only place to get the power to control myself is to get it from the One who has all power. and it kind of reminds me of this little netbook i'm using to write (delightful machine except that every time i try to capitalize something i hit the up arrow and wind up somewhere else on the page). it only lasts a very short time without being plugged into the wall. the battery life on it (and me) is low.

i can do all things through Christ Who gives me strength. but only through Him, can i do all things. i cannot do all things if i try to do them without being connected to Him. (this is beginning to sound like geometry)

all i need to control myself is self control. just that easy. just that quick.

but i will say this. i have a little more self control today than i had yesterday. it's like a muscle. the more you use it the stronger it gets. and if i get it, i can train it into my children. my little seed can grow into a mighty crop of self controlled ness. we'll have self control sprouting up all over the place.

so i guess that i'll control myself.