Self-Control - Tuesday Praise & Pray (for others) September 8, 2026

Without self-control, chaos, lack of discipline, and disorder result. Christians aren't exempt from this reality. They need to practice consistent self-control to prevent confusion and ungodliness from becoming the norm. We are told in 2 Timothy 1:7 - For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control (BSB). Self-control is a gift from God to help believers avoid being swept into backsliding and the things that appear fine but are designed to lead them to hell. As we cultivate self-discipline as a lifestyle, it is easier to resist willful sin.

Despite the well-earned praise he received, King Solomon arguably lacked self-control. He ended up with 700 wives and 300 concubines, despite God's warning that the Israelites should not marry foreigners and that a king should not have many wives (Deuteronomy 7:3-4; Deuteronomy 17:17). He allowed his wives to bring their idolatry and false god worship into the land. He joined them to bow, and this resulted in him and many Israelites disobeying God's requirement that His people worship no one else.

King Solomon's father also displayed an unfortunate lack of discipline in the situation with Bathsheba. King David knew she was a married woman, but his flesh spoke louder than wisdom. He should have been at the battle with his army but chose to peep on a woman as she bathed. The lack of self-control displayed there set off a spiral of sins, including adultery, lies, murder, and death. For both of these great kings, self-control would have helped them quiet their fleshly desires and buy time to reconsider their next steps. Steps that brought trouble to themselves, their families, and their people.

That's the thing about self-control. It's easy to ignore when it's up against a sin that seems 'sweeter'. The sin that challenges our ability to be self-disciplined is always something that will please our carnal selves. But we must realize that sin will also take something from our eternal selves, even if all it does is create deep regret. We cannot forget that although we walk on this earth, it is not our home. Our souls were created for eternity, and our decisions here can affect whether we spend forever in heaven or in hell. We should not allow the lack of self-control to cost us heaven.

David cried out to the Lord in repentance when confronted with his wickedness by Prophet Nathan. Solomon also regretted many of the choices that stemmed from his lack of self-control and expressed regret in Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. We can receive God's forgiveness when we fail to apply self-control through genuine repentance and changes that reflect our appreciation for God's grace.

Still, although God shows us mercy, the consequences for lacking discipline can linger. For David, death, destruction, and dysfunction entered into his family, producing a series of tragedies. His daughter, Tamar, was assaulted by a brother, who was murdered by another sibling, Absalom. Absalom went on to dethrone his father, dishonor and maltreat a group of concubines, and even tried to kill David, dying in the attempt.

The problems didn't stop there, as even King Solomon had to kill a brother to secure his throne. By introducing idol and false god worship into the land, he angered God, who decided that Solomon's heirs would not hold onto the kingdom. The successor, Rehoboam, was barely on the throne when his lack of wisdom cost him 10 of the 12 tribes. They chose to become their own separate kingdom. Once more, the fruits of failing to exert self-control were visible.

Are you lacking self-control in some areas of your life? Could it be the time you spend on social media? Maybe your shopping habits? Can you stop yourself from getting angry? Or do you struggle to discipline your mind so you don't give in to fear when life's challenges arise? How about your capacity to wait on the Lord to answer your prayers? Are you able? Think about these things and be honest.

Realize that a Christian without self-control cannot stand firm in faith. Such a person's prayers will have a hard time being answered (James 1:5-6). These people will be easily manipulated by the devil. The lack of discipline and self-control leads to a spiral of sin, chaos, confusion, and destruction. This is what satan wants for believers because its goal is to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10). We must not submit to its will.

God, however, wants us to put the spirit of self-control we have to work. And He desires to help us with this so we live in the truth of what Jesus said in Luke 10:19, having authority over all of satan's power. That way we become effective threshing tools for His purpose. Sin may seem 'sweet' at the moment, but once we count the cost, we see that abandoning discipline will not produce good results. May the good Lord help each of us to live as His children, vessels who exert self-control and walk as His royal priesthood on the earth, IJN, Amen.