| The Ministry of Comfort |
Chapter 14 |
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It is well that we pause, therefore, in the pressure under which we are striving, to give thought to self culture. The beginning of it lies in self mastery. There are many men who have prodigious strength, and yet never have achieved self control. We are truly strong, not merely when we have great forces of energy, but when we can command these forces at will. “He that ruleth his own spirit is greater than he that taketh a city.” There is much of bad temper even among Christian people. Many are quick to speak, flying into a passion at the slightest provocation. They are sensitive even to the point of touchiness. They have capacity for strenuous life, but they are weak, driven of every wind and tossed, because their bark is without a helm. Under momentary impulses they do rash and foolish things which grieve their friends and do irreparable harm to their own life.
Few faults mar the beauty and the influence of a life more than the habit of ill temper. One writes: “Losing the temper takes all the sweet, pure feeling out of life. You may get up in the morning with a clean heart, full of song, and start out as happy as a bird; and the moment you are crossed and you give way to your temper, the clean feeling vanishes and a load as heavy as lead is rolled upon your heart, and you go through the rest of the day feeling like a culprit, unless you promptly confess your fault and seek forgiveness of God and man.”
We all admire a self controlled person, one who is not irritated by irritating experiences, who is not disturbed in his equanimity by confusing or annoying circumstances, who is not vexed nor fretted by life’s trials. This power of self control is a higher mark of royalty than crown or scepter. Self culture includes self mastery. It holds the reins of the life and restrains every rude impulse, every wayward desire. It sits on the throne, and every feeling, every passion, every energy, every emotion, is ruled by it.
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