Written by: Sister Maxine Shackelford
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, against such things There is no law.” Galatians 5:22 ESV
As December brings an end to this year, the seed of the Spirit, Self-control brings an end to the Grandmothers of Hope’s series on Practicing the Fruit of the Spirit, which is one of the most Important fruits to possess. When pondering self-control, I thought of a time in history in Nazareth, a town in Galilee, where God sent the angel Gabriel to a virgin engaged to be married to a carpenter named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored!” The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled by his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” “How will this be, “Mary asked the angel,” since I am a virgin? The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So, the Holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” “I am the Lord’s servant, Mary answered, may your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her. Mary exemplified self-control after hearing that she would become pregnant and still a virgin while being engaged to be married. She trusted God to deal with her fiancé, who also had to use self-control after Mary had conceived. After telling Joseph she was pregnant by the power Holy Spirit, Joseph could not comprehend what she was telling him and wanted to put her away. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph Son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus because he will save his people from their sins.” It is impossible to show self-control without first being humble. Not only was Mary humble, but her self-control came easy. After the angel told Mary that the child, she would be carrying would be the Savior of the world, she could have left him boasting and bragging to everyone she came in contact with. “But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” She chose to be guided by the Holy Spirit and demonstrate self-control. God chose Mary and Joseph to be Jesus’ parents because He knew they would be obedient. Practicing self-control is made possible by being both humble and obedient. This seed of the Fruit of the Spirit requires regulating your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors to achieve specific goals or avoid undesirable outcomes. You’re cultivating the power to resist temptation, delay gratification, and maintain focus on your priorities. When we lose control of our actions, we miss out on God’s promises. Jesus said, “only the pure in heart shall see God.” Your heart must be pure and have the desire to please God as Mary and Joseph did, then self-control will manifest itself in your lives.
Written and researched by Sis. Maxine Shackelford
Grandmothers of Hope Society Ministry
Reference:
Holy Bible Scripture References and Suggestions:
Galatians 5:22 ESV
Luke 1:28-42 NIV
Matthew 1:18-25 NIV
Luke 2:19 Matthew 5:8