Titus 2:6

This verse comes from a letter the apostle Paul wrote to Titus, a young church leader he had placed in charge of new congregations on the island of Crete. Paul was giving Titus practical guidance on how to shepherd different groups within the community — older men, older women, younger women, and here, young men. The word 'similarly' ties this instruction to the advice just given to others. Paul's entire instruction for young men is a single word: self-control. In the Greek, this refers to mastering one's impulses, emotions, and desires — thinking before acting. Notably, Paul doesn't just tell young men to be self-controlled; he tells Titus to actively encourage them toward it, implying it requires community, not just willpower.

God, I want my actions to match my values, and I know I can't get there on willpower alone. Give me the strength to pause before I react, and put people around me who call me toward who I'm becoming rather than excusing who I've been. Amen.

Nobody tells a young man to be self-controlled because it comes naturally. The instruction exists precisely because it doesn't. Whether it's the impulse to speak before you listen, to scroll instead of sleep, to let anger do the talking in an argument you'll regret, or to chase the next rush before the last one has even settled — the war between impulse and intention is real, and it wears you down. What's easy to miss here is Paul's word 'encourage.' He doesn't say shame them, lecture them, or write them off. He says encourage. That's active investment. It's someone older saying 'I see you, I've been there, and you can do this.' Self-control isn't about suppressing who you are — it's about becoming someone whose actions actually match what they value. The person who wants to be trustworthy but keeps blowing up in conflict, who wants to be present but keeps disappearing into a screen — self-control is the bridge between wanting and being. And Paul's point is that bridge doesn't get built alone. It gets built when someone is walking alongside you. Who in your life is either offering or receiving that kind of investment right now? That question is worth more than the answer feels comfortable admitting.