The Super Fruit of Self-Control

 

“But hospitable, a lover of what is good, sober-minded, just holy, self-controlled.”

 

                        Titus 1:8

 

Last time we spoke about the term super fruit. These are fruits that are highly nutritious and provide your body with essential building blocks. Did you know that there are super fruits available for your soul? Our soul needs to be fed for it is the real core of who we are. There is the fruit of the Holy Spirit which enables God’s children to live a life of faith in the world. Each week we will talk about a different fruit, or as some feel a different aspect of one fruit with multiple uses.  On a recent car ride my family and I made a list of some of the natural super fruits that feed our natural body and tried to associate one with a spiritual fruit. So, here goes.

Where do we start with self-control?

Is it more than using will power to avoid scarfing down the last cookie or taking a trip to Costco for just one small item? There are books on good setting boundaries that tell you who, what, and where, to lay those lines of self-control. Is it being able to avoid, run, or turn my head away from things that gnaw at my thoughts? In our natural state as humans we can use some amount of this virtue. But is that enough in a world that eats human virtues for lunch?

Picture a blueberry as fruit of self-control. Why blueberries? They are so delicious, you have a hard time believing they are good for you. Of course, it’s hard to have just a few. However, we have to apply self-control for even too much of a good thing can get messy and leave behind unsightly stains. So, this requires wisdom and help to give just the right balance in our lives.

 

How is the fruit of the soul different?

The fruit for the soul in this case, reminds us that we can find satisfaction in other ways. Our body needs food, but it doesn’t dictate things like a spoiled child who thinks of the cookie as MINE! Your perspective of food as fuel can accomplish good godly goals that come first.  So you can better watch what you eat, the portions you need, and quality of the food you consume. Maybe a trip to Costco, reminds you that you have more than you need. You count your blessings being in a land of plenty, and you don’t need everything you see. Besides, you are reminded that we are managers, not owners of anything on earth. Real riches are saved for eternity. We can be happy with what we have and use it wisely and with thanks to the Lord for His provision. Maybe when it comes to getting advice on self-control we see godly boundaries and our perspective alters. Instead of seeing God’s laws as constraining and limiting, it becomes a solid foundation under our feet in a chaotic world. What we give up is passing away, yet what we don’t see yet is becoming more a reality with each passing day.

Hope you get to enjoy a taste from the fruit of the Spirit every day. Tell us about your own take on how you take on the virtue of self-control.