Imagine yourself, if you will, in a bustling lecture hall, where the air hums with the fervor of young minds eager to seize the world.
We've told this generation, with the best of intentions, to embrace self-esteem and self-respect—to affirm their worth at every turn. Yet, in our zeal, we've overlooked a vital companion: self-control.
For just because one possesses the capacity to act or speak does not imply that one ought to do so. As the ancient wisdom of Jeremiah reminds us, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9).
Emotions, for all their intensity, are no infallible guide to truth; they ebb and flow like the tides, often leading us astray. How you feel is not a reflection on reality.
Consider the tragic pursuit of self-worth in the ephemeral—in fleeting accolades, unchecked desires, or the applause of the crowd. Such foundations crumble, yielding not life but a shadow of death, an emptiness that echoes the void.
But ah, there is a profound alternative, a narrative of redemption penned by the Creator Himself. True life—vibrant, purposeful, eternal—resides in Christ, who declared, "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). We, as fallen creatures—all of us having "sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23)—must learn to rein in those passions that war against the soul, cultivating self-control as a radiant fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:23).
It is in submitting our wills to His divine standards of goodness, mercy, and love that we discover genuine freedom, not in the tyranny of impulse.
In a culture that champions "if it feels right, do it," let us pause and reflect: Might there not be wisdom in learning restraint?
For the path of surrender to God's design yields not suppression, but sublime liberation.
How you feel about yourself, or how you see yourself, will not set you free.
The truth alone shall set you free.
And that Truth is Jesus.
We've told this generation, with the best of intentions, to embrace self-esteem and self-respect—to affirm their worth at every turn. Yet, in our zeal, we've overlooked a vital companion: self-control.
For just because one possesses the capacity to act or speak does not imply that one ought to do so. As the ancient wisdom of Jeremiah reminds us, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9).
Emotions, for all their intensity, are no infallible guide to truth; they ebb and flow like the tides, often leading us astray. How you feel is not a reflection on reality.
Consider the tragic pursuit of self-worth in the ephemeral—in fleeting accolades, unchecked desires, or the applause of the crowd. Such foundations crumble, yielding not life but a shadow of death, an emptiness that echoes the void.
But ah, there is a profound alternative, a narrative of redemption penned by the Creator Himself. True life—vibrant, purposeful, eternal—resides in Christ, who declared, "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). We, as fallen creatures—all of us having "sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23)—must learn to rein in those passions that war against the soul, cultivating self-control as a radiant fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:23).
It is in submitting our wills to His divine standards of goodness, mercy, and love that we discover genuine freedom, not in the tyranny of impulse.
In a culture that champions "if it feels right, do it," let us pause and reflect: Might there not be wisdom in learning restraint?
For the path of surrender to God's design yields not suppression, but sublime liberation.
How you feel about yourself, or how you see yourself, will not set you free.
The truth alone shall set you free.
And that Truth is Jesus.
No Comments