Losing Control

Proverbs 25:28 NIV

"Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control."

The rant is coming.  You can feel it rising through in your bones.  The blood is rushing to your face.   What's next?

The driver cuts you off.  You are running late, and they slow down in front of you.  Your hand is ready on the horn. You pull as close to the bumper as you dare.  Now what?

Your kid is throwing a tantrum in the mall.  People are staring at you in disdain.   The child is screaming at the top of his or her lungs.  What keeps you in control?

A customer is berating you in front of other customers.  They step closer to you and you feel yourself go into a defensive posture.  How do you act?

A boss embarasses you in front of your peers.  The tongue lashing gets personal and cuts deep.  What is the next move?

You are alone and surfing the internet.  A link to a porn site appears.  No one will know if you click on it...

These scenarios are just a few I have personally experienced.  How do you engage control?  Do you leave your emotion button out there for people to easily push?

Broken walls cannot stop danger or provide security.  When we lose control, we allow sinful desires to grip us.  These desires or emotions can be controlled but we need a control "valve" in our lives.
Jesus sent His Spirit to bring us comfort and to aid in our spiritual development.   He does so by providing a "fruit" of godliness that enables us to act with love, joy, peace, patience,  kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness,  and self-control.  There are no laws restricting these human attributes (Galatians 5:22, 23). 

Self-control can be described as temperance which is having restraint.  Without restraint we become a slave to sinful desires.  The Holy Spirit helps us to exercise our ability to control ourselves so we build up a "wall" or resistance to the sinful desires that seek to control us.  Temperance breaks the chain of slavery in our lives.

"Fruit" is just a simple way of describing the origin of something.   The origin of self-control starts with Jesus, is powered by the Holy Spirit, and learned by us.  Self-control is an action that we must choose to master.  Until we do our walls will continually remain broken,  and we will have a difficult time reining in our emotions. 

Don't let other people or sinful desires control your "Easy" button.  Life just may become a little more peaceful.