Tag Archives: self-control

May 21
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“Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. . .”  (Philippians 1:27a, NIV)

To be a disciple of Jesus means surrendering the privilege of self-justification.

Paul reminds us that external circumstances must not dictate our response.  In all that we do, our sole ambition is to please our heavenly Father.  We engage in self-justification at the risk of causing the gospel of Jesus to lose its opportunity to engage those who need it.

Today, resolve to conduct all of your affairs in a manner worthy of the good news of our Lord.  We can do no more; we should expect from ourselves no less.  – Luther

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April 13
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“These are the nations the Lord left to test all those Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan (he did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience): The five rulers of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites living in the Lebanon mountains from Mount Baal Hermon to Lebo Hamath.  They were left to test the Israelites to see whether they would obey the Lord’s commands, which he had given their ancestors through Moses.”  (Judges 3:1-4, NIV)
In the life of a disciple of Jesus, even one’s enemies are a part of God’s plan.
In today’s scripture reading from the book of Judges, enemies existed to teach the children of the Exodus how to defend themselves, and to test their devotion to God. (Please see Judges 2:20-22.)
Today, our biggest threat is not the sword (although physical threats do, indeed, exist).  Instead, our biggest threats are all of the influences and agents that oppose the Spirit of God within us.  Even here we must pray for our enemies as we utilize the weapons of the Spirit, which are: Truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, salvation, and the word of God.
So, do not curse your enemies.  Pray for them.  Resist them with the weapons of the Spirit, which alone are adequate for spiritual warfare.  – Luther
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April 12
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“Do you see someone who speaks in haste?  There is more hope for a fool than for them.”  (Proverbs 29:20, NIV)

We live in a time where we can communicate with millions of other people in seconds, which is all the more reason we ought to heed the advice of today’s proverb.

Each day brings fresh, public examples of people speaking first, and thinking second.  The harm is often as devastating as it is irreparable.

Today, remember to measure your words.  Count to ten before giving an answer.  Store that prickly e-mail in the “drafts” folder for a while, and re-read it later.  Hold that text message.  Delay the tweet.  Pressing “send” in the heat of a matter often leads to regret.

God’s wisdom is as useful in the electronic age as it was in the oral age!  – Luther

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