Devotional Nine: Self-Control

“Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”  -James 1:19-20 

“Ephraim, let me go! It’s been long enough, Ephraim...I’ve decided to rejoin the human race, and Ephraim, I want you to give me away.”  -Dolly Levi, Hello, Dolly! 

In his epistle, James commands Christians to listen first, respond carefully, and avoid anger. The final fruit of the Spirit is hard for everyone who interacts with other human beings; in short, self-control is difficult for everyone at some point. Rather than listening with sincerity, people want others to understand their point of view first and foremost. Self-control requires that people put others first and seek to understand and hear others rather than forcing their point of view on others. 

To the astute observer, there are two versions of Dolly in the musical. There is the front-facing Dolly, who is witty, charming, and talks a mile a minute. Then there is the hidden Dolly, who only reveals herself when she is alone and talking imaginatively with her former husband, Ephraim. In these moments with Ephraim, the audience sees Dolly for who she truly is, and that is a character who doesn’t have everything all together, like the front-facing Dolly. Keeping up the front of the first Dolly requires a great deal of self-control and takes an emotional toll on Dolly. She can only truly be herself in Ephraim’s presence. Only with Ephraim can she drop the mask and let her true feelings emerge. 

Like Dolly, all of humanity plays several roles throughout a typical day, and many times, these roles contradict or, at the very least, cause dissonance in life. Dolly practices considerable self-control in that she constantly puts others before herself. Only when she realizes that she truly loves Horace and doesn’t want him simply for his money does Dolly reveal her vulnerable self to someone other than Ephraim and the audience. 

Like Dolly, perhaps you are living behind a mask. In this age of authenticity, being truly vulnerable is still an ideal everyone struggles with. Thankfully, the Ultimate God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Unlike His feeble creation, God is always true. There is no clever deception or two-faced nature with the God of the Universe. May His true authenticity cause us to present who we truly are to Him. He will accept and love us for who we truly are, and He will give us the power to become more like Christ through sanctification.