In this episode of the Weekday podcast, Pastor Chuck Allen introduces us to the "weapon of self-control" as a powerful defense against fear. Drawing from 2 Timothy 1:7, which reminds us that God has given us a spirit of power, love, and self-control, he explains how self-control acts as a safeguard for our minds and hearts. Pastor Chuck highlights the importance of guarding our thoughts, comparing a lack of self-control to a city with broken walls, vulnerable to attack. Through gratitude and eliminating negative self-talk, we can rewire our brains, reduce anxiety, and live in the abundance God desires for us. Today’s message is a call to harness the strength of self-control and approach life with a heart full of gratitude.
Hi everybody, and thanks so much for joining me on today's weekday podcast. The other day I spoke about a weapon of love, and today I want to introduce you to the weapon of self control.
Second Timothy one seven again says, for God has given us a spirit not of fear, but of power and love and self control. So how is self control actually a weapon against fear? Well, according to proverbs 25, like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self control. Without self control, we are compared to a city thats ransacked by the enemy. When we lack self control, we lose big time. Self control protects the gifts God has given us, one of which is the power of the mind. Our minds are gifts from God, offering us more power than we could possibly realize. A study in psychology today makes this statement that neurotransmitters control virtually all of the body's functions, from feeling happy to modulating hormones to dealing with stress. As a result, our thoughts influence our bodies directly because the body interprets the message coming from the brain to prepare us for whatever is expected. You see, our thoughts control both how we feel and how we respond to the world around us. Along with this tool, God gave us a free will about what we choose to think about. And although we can't control those thoughts that are like pop up ads, we can choose to click on them and explore them further, or the power to ignore them. There are a lot of ways we can use the weapon of self control to overpower the beast of fear. But the two most powerful that come to my mind are having a heart of gratitude. When you have a mind of gratitude, it literally rewires your brain to eliminate anxious triggers. Be grateful today. And the second one? Throw out negative self talk. Anxiety feeds on negativity, feelings of low self worth, things like guilt, focusing on the one thing that went wrong rather than all that went right, making predictions about worst case scenarios. Or I just want us to look and say our negative thoughts usually are not accurate and they're hurting us, not helping us. We wouldn't tell our friend she's a failure because she forgot one minor detail. Or tell our kid since their dad isn't home on time, he might have had a heart attack or died. That's unthinkable right? So why do we talk to ourselves that way? So I want to encourage you today, grab this concept of being able to have a life in abundance through the weapon of self control, and take out a heart full of gratitude today and eliminate all that negative self talk. God bless you, friend. And thanks so much for joining me on today's weekday podcast.
