By Practicing Self-Control We End up Practicing Love

There are many qualities that are instrumental in helping us to avoid falling away from Christ.

“⁵For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, ⁶and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, ⁷and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. ⁸For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” – 2 Peter 1:5-8 (ESV)

Each of these qualities, as Peter writes, leads to the next and it is important that we observe each of them to maintain and grow our “knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ”. I also notice that all these qualities lead to the ultimate quality of our Lord Jesus Chris which is LOVE.

I have studied some of these qualities over the past few years and will continue to study them and others as I look to understand and grow my knowledge each day. With love I have spent a good amount of time studying and have found that whatever the situation or circumstances I find myself in, when I am demonstrating love for those around me, all can be overcome.

I want to be clear and state that just because I love I get everything I want and all is made glorious in my world. What I am referring to is that when I love, all is ultimately overcome by God. He provides the resolutions that are needed and not necessarily the resolutions we are looking for.

I look back at the life of my grandparents and the comfort by which they seemed to have in themselves and their lives. I see how they lived with the simple means and never “wanted” for much of anything other than to have relationships with their family. What I also remember about them is the LOVE they demonstrated at all times. They did for others without expectation of anything in return. They only relaxed when the work was done and then only for a short while until they recognized the chance to demonstrate love again by making coffee for everyone.

I do not want to seem like everything was perfect for my grandparents. For sure they had their struggles, but the key thing was that those struggles were their own and when in the presence of everyone else, the self-control they demonstrated led to the love they shared with each of those around them.

I will be taking the demonstrated advice of my grandparents as I go forward. I will be demonstrating the self-control with will lead to the demonstration of love. My goal is not to be better than others, only to the best that God has intended me to be.

When you look out, are your demonstrating self-control? Are you looking out for yourself by frankly, looking out for the good of everyone around you? Will you demonstrate self-control with the goal of demonstrating love?