the self

I was thinking about more proverbs that I’ve heard here and there, as well as some of the verses that I’ve read over my lifetime and began noticing a few constants.  One of them particularly that means something to me is the idea that we can master ourselves and/or be empowered by truly knowing ourselves.  It gives me hope to think that there actually is a light at the end of the tunnel and I’m not just imagining it.   The first person I think of when this topic comes to mind is the Apostle Paul.

 In 1 Cor 9:27, he wrote the following.  “No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”

The previous verses elude to the need for those following Christ to train their bodies and minds like runners do to prepare for a race.  And then race with all we have, as if running for an eternal crown.

This passage makes me think that controlling myself the way I should be controlled is hard.  Paul is saying that he physically struck himself for the sake of the gospel.  I don’t know about anyone else, but I don’t usually hit myself.  The idea that controlling myself is hard led me to look at other sources to see what they say.   And here’s what I found,

Lao Tzu said “Mastering others is strength. Mastering yourself is true power.”

 Buddha said “All that we are is the result of what we have thought.”   And “It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell.”

A bible verse along the same vein can be found in Proverbs 16:32, “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; And he that ruleth his spirit, than he that taketh a city.”

I think those two are the most powerful.  Controlling myself is better than taking a city.  Which leads me to believe that controlling myself is harder than taking a city or winning battles.

it seems that the general consensus is that, in order to get through life with any kind of grace, one of the things we must do is learn to control ourselves and our actions.   Our words.  I, myself, frequently need to reel myself in.  God says “Be still and know that I am the Lord.”  I never thought that actually doing that would be a difficult task.