"Like a city whose walls are broken down, is a man who lacks self control." Proverbs 25:28
Back in the day the only thing that kept a city's enemies from coming in and stealing the woman and children, destroying the buildings and killing the King was a wall. A city with a strong wall was a safe city. A city with a weak wall was a targeted city. A city with no wall, was a destroyed city.
God makes an interesting parallel in this passage. He compares a man with no self control to a city that has no walls.
Apparently, it is our self control (being able to say yes to the right things and no to the wrong things) that protects us like the walls of an ancient city.
It is our self control (saying yes to the right things and no to the wrong things) that will protect our family, our finances, and our faith from the many enemies of our culture.
For most of us, myself included, self control is something we generally don't think about until we make a mistake, a dumb purchase, or say something we shouldn't have said. It is in those times when we lose control, that we realize how important self control really is. But that is the equivalent of an ancient city realizing it has a hole in its wall, as the enemy is climbing in, by then … it's too late.
Today, let’s make a pledge to ourself to work on self control. Like an ancient city, we have a lot of things that need protected. And if we say yes to the right things, those items will be safe. If we so yes to the wrong things, destruction is right around the corner.
Today, let’s build the wall.