Being a Titus 2 Woman - Self-Control

THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED.

Today we are talking about the 3rd virtue included in the Being a Titus 2 Woman series. This series is based off of the book Feminine Appeal, which shares 7 virtues of a Godly wife and mother from Titus 2:3-5:

Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.

Now we have to remember that the goal of demonstrating these virtues in our lives is so "that the word of God may not be reviled." Also, we need to remember that we are sinners and we are going to fail at living out these virtues day in and day out. We need the grace of God and the Holy Spirit working in us and through us everyday!

Today we are talking about Self-Control. Whew! I am nervous already! A few weeks ago, I told you about my struggle lately with self-control (Sometimes, I am THE HULK) and my words. Now, I am going to be sharing about self-control...Yikes! Upfront, I just need to say that this is not an area I am great at. However, I am striving to grow in this virtue! And this book gave me a lot of great wisdom about the topic!

Why is self-control important? Carolyn answers that on pg.64,

Self-control is what we need in order to say no to sinful desires, what we need to follow through on godly desires. Self-control will enable us to meet those goals, decline that chocolate cake, and resist the temptation to lash out at our child.

Ahhh...so that is why it is so important! Self-control is what helps us grow in our walk with Christ. Self-control helps us to live out a Godly life, saying no to sin and yes to Holiness! This is a very important virtue! That is probably why it is also a Fruit of the Spirit! Self-control should be a virtue that every Christian is displaying in their life!

Now, "self-control doesn't just happen. We can't adopt the indifferent attitude "let go and let God" and expect magically to become self-controlled. Self-control requires effort. However, development of this quality is not solely dependent upon us. We cannot acquire this virtue by our own strength. It is only as we cooperate with the power of the Holy Spirit that we will achieve self-control" (pg. 65). If I try to become self-controlled by myself, I will fail. It is only through Christ that I can even begin to achieve this virtue.

For a starting point, Carolyn says (pg.67) we need to realize our sinful desires,

The first step in constructing this wall of self-control is to acknowledge one simple yet hideous fact about ourselves: We like to sin! This may not be easy to concede, but it's true...Admitting to these ungodly delights is the starting point in our quest for self-control...When we recognize self-control as the virtue that spares us from sin's negative consequences, we will welcome it eagerly as our friend.

Having self-control will help us to say no to sinful desires, and in doing so, we will also be saying no to the consequences of that sin.

So, instead of getting rude with my husband when I am upset and demeaning him and showing him disrespect, I could use self-control. I would realize I was getting upset, choose to not talk until I calm down (Therefore, not sinning), then not say things that would hurt my husband to the core (Not suffering the consequence).

I need to welcome self-control into my life with open arms!!! How about you?

In this chapter, Carolyn also talks about our eating habits, sleeping habits, thoughts, feelings, and behavior. It is packed full of great wisdom!

For more resource, visit June who did a great post about self-control, titled Self Government of the Tongue.

Imagine that your family dared you to live without one thing for an entire week. How many days do you think you would last?

You can view all the posts in the series by visiting the Series Index.

For more information about the book, Feminine Appeal, visit Crossway, our series Partner.

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(For giveaway rules see the Introduction)