The secret of self-control?

Yesterday I wrote about a passage in Proverbs 24 that describes a vineyard overgrown with weeds, where the security wall has crumbled and fallen to the ground...this morning, I noticed this verse in Proverbs 25:

"Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control."

Seems to me that the subject of self-control is something that most of us joke about more than really focus on trying to master...which leads me to the question, How do we maintain self-control on an ongoing basis? If your experience is anything like mine, self-control is a fleeting thing...you might have a day, or even a few days where you feel you've got things under control...and then...wham! It feels like all the progress you've made has been lost, and then some...

So, what is the secret? I have this idea in my head about what the secret might be...I can't say for sure, but I think it's worth an ongoing experiment...or as the scientists would say, "a longitudinal study..." Let's make a study, shall we? Because a city whose walls are broken down is in sad shape...utterly vulnerable to outside threats and attacks...and ultimately, vulnerable to destruction... It seems to me that studying the secret to self-control is an endeavor worthy of our time and attention this week...

I have this gut feeling that if we will take 15-20 minutes, once each day, to do nothing but sit quietly (no music, no TV, no reading...), our inner muscles of self-control will be strengthened. If you want to go even farther with this experiment in soul training, follow your 15-20 minutes of sitting quietly with 5-10 minutes of journaling...when you journal, here are a few places you might like to start:

Answer the questions -

What are my goals this week? Financial? Physical? Spiritual? In Relationships?

What did I do well last week?

What areas would I like to improve in the coming week?

What is the one thing I believe is important that I do this week?

You might come up with a host of additional questions to answer, notes to write...whatever the case may be, but I encourage you to take the 5-10 minutes each day to first "draw a picture" of what you want your week to look like, and then each day after that, take just a minute or two to look back at your list and remind yourself of where you're going.

My hypothesis about the secret of self-control? When our hearts are calmer and steadier, and our thoughts are clear and focused, self-control comes to us much more easily...it's my observation in myself that when I routinely participate in the exercises described above, I am calmer and happier...and when I am calmer and happier, self-control comes much more easily to me.

So this week, I hope you'll join me in making your journey a more contemplative one, including some quiet sitting, and some journaling. May your heart be made calmer and may your inner muscles of self-control be strengthened!