9th Fruit: Self Control

Today is the last installment of the Fruits of the Holy Spirit mini-meditations. Check below for what’s coming next.

INTRODUCTION (you can skip this if you are already following the Fruits of the Holy Spirit series.) We continue our mini-meditations on the Fruits of the Holy Spirit. Saint Paul’s letter to the Galatians lists nine of them: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, and self-control. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, drawing on other biblical teachings, include four additional fruits: generosity, gentleness, modesty and chastity. (CCC #1832) The added four emphasize aspects of the original nine; generosity, for example, would likely be included in teachings on love, gentleness with kindness, and chastity and modesty with self-control.

An easy way to understand the Fruits of the Spirit are to think of them as seeds of habits that we will need to live in heaven. The Holy Spirit plants them inside us, and if we tend to them like we would any plant or tree, they will grow and produce fruit, the spiritual kind.

We will follow the traditional lectio divina prayer form: reading, meditation, talk (pray), and contemplation.

READ the commentary and passage.

SELF CONTROL is the ability to control one’s body and its desires, both physical and mental. It means to use the good things God gave you in moderation; that is, to use them as you need them and to enjoy them, but not to overuse or use inappropriately.

SELF CONTROL is also called continence and temperance and is related to chastity and sobriety. It’s the opposite of overeating, overdrinking, and indulging excessively and inappropriately in sexual desires.

SELF CONTROL is moderation and self-restraint. It involves both actions and words. It’s being the boss of your body, soul and spirit–desires and all. It’s staying calm. It’s avoiding extremes. It’s retraint in what you do and what you say.

SELF CONTROL is like a basket of tropical fruit: so much fresh, tasty, good-for-you things to enjoy in life, but only without consequence if used in moderation. SELF CONTROL is powerful! In fact, love and self-control are the two bookends that hold up all the other virtues.

What I say is this: let the Spirit direct your lives, and you will not satisfy the desires of the human nature. For what our human nature wants is opposed to what the Spirit wants, and what the Spirit wants is opposed to what our human nature wants… But the Spirit produces loves, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, and self-control. (St. Paul in his letter to the Galatioans 5: 16-17; 22)

READ it a second time and notice what word, phrase, image, or emotion stuck out to you.

MEDITATE: Read the passage a third time. Then pause and ponder. What message does God seem to be sending you? Is He addressing your relationship with Him or with others? Is He advising you, or challenging you, or comforting you?

PRAY: Read the passage again. What is your response to God? What do you want to tell Him? How you feel? That you are sorry? Grateful? Worried? Thankful? Take the time to say all you have to say. Make it an honest prayer.

CONTEMPLATE: Read the passage one more time. Then sit quietly in God’s presence.

This ends our Gifts and Fruits of the Holy Spirit series. THANK YOU for praying these with us. Even if you didn’t take the time to meditate and contemplate, you are one step closer to God because you can’t read His word and not have benefited from them in some way.

Next week we will celebrate Pentecost and the Ascension with holy cards again. Please subscribe at https://victoriaryanbooks.com/subscribe/ It’s just your email so I know where to send blog reminders on Tuesdays and Thursdays and a mini-newsletter at the top of the month. Unsubscribe anytime.

What is the biblical meaning of numbers???

Find out by following my summer series–fun facts and questions for reflecting on the beach, in the backyard, around a campfire, under the stars, or with the sunrise or sunset.