The Fruit of the Spirit: Gentleness and Self-Control

Hey ladies! Today, we finish up the Fruits of the Spirit! I thought I’d put these two together in this last post because they do go together, if you think about it, especially in how we act towards others.

Definition:

(Gentleness): not severe, rough, or violent; mild; moderate

(Self-control): control or restraint of one’s feelings, actions, etc.

I think that these two fruits go together because if you have one, you generally also have (or should have) the other. For example, instead of being overcome with fury for someone who mistreats me, I need to control myself and my anger, and treat that person gently instead. Both of these fruits are extremely important for the Christian. We need to strive to be Christ-like, and Jesus tells us in the Bible to “turn the other cheek”. Jesus Himself behaved with gentleness and self-control towards the Pharisees and others who went out of their way to try to ensnare Him and get rid of Him. He even prayed for those who put Him to death on the cross! Here are two verses about gentleness and self-control, respectively:

“A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.” Proverbs 15:4

“A man without self–control is like a city broken into and left without walls.” Proverbs 25:28

Without self-control, it’s really easy for other people to rile us up. We will constantly become prey to our emotions, and will eventually destroy ourselves by doing things that we bitterly regret later. The Bible tells us to have a spirit of gentleness about us. We need to show that gentleness to others, and not fly at them when they annoy us. We also need to speak kindly to others, as hard as that is in this day and age, since it seems that building ourselves up even at the expense of others is practiced by a lot of people. Remember also that being gentle does not mean that we as Christians need to let ourselves be trampled on by others! The Apostles spoke in defense of their faith, and they did so with truth, sincerity, and not at all in a harsh way.

I know that for me, all of this is pretty hard. It’s hard to turn the other cheek, and hard to speak kindly to people who aren’t always nice in return. But anything is possible through God, and He gives us strength to do His will.

So one way we can show gentleness and self-control is to perhaps take a deep breath before we answer back to someone who irritates us, and remember that they, just as we do, have a purpose that God has known from the beginning of time.

Have an awesome day! 😉