Why Do I Feel So Out Of Control // Receipts: The Proof Is In The Fruit ( Part 10)

Focus Keywords: self-control, sin nature, Spirit control, spiritual protection, Galatians 5:22, Proverbs 25:28, Christian living, transformation, obedience, crazy fruit offering

This summary and rewrite, based on excerpts from Pastor Michael Todd’s message “Why Do I Feel So Out Of Control // Receipts: The Proof Is In The Fruit (Part 10),” addresses the universal struggle for self-control, redefining it not as a demanding personal effort, but as a Spirit-empowered fruit of faith. The message anchors this concept in the church’s annual focus on “fruit,” specifically tied to the Crazy Fruit Offering.

The Core Conflict: Why We Feel Out of Control

The message opens by recognizing a common vulnerability: the feeling of being “out of control” in multiple areas of life. This lack of control often stems from believing for “fruit” (results or blessings) in areas where no corresponding “seed” (intentional effort, discipline, or resources) has been sown. While God can occasionally perform the unexpected, relying solely on miracles without stewarding the principles He provides is not the common practice.

The areas where we lack self-control are often the places that “comfort us the most”—places we retreat to when we feel emotionally outraged, unseen, or “lose”. The speaker suggests that the failure to achieve the abundant life God desires is often linked to the refusal to accept the gift of self-control.

Self-Control: A Divine Receipt

Self-control is listed as one of the “nine receipts” or fruits produced by the Holy Spirit in a believer’s life, alongside love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and gentleness (Galatians 5:22). This immediately addresses the confusion inherent in the term: Is it “self”-initiated, or is it “Spirit”-empowered?.

The conviction is clear: self-control is produced by the Spirit. Many people have attempted self-control through sheer willpower—writing goals on mirrors or refrigerators—only to find themselves failing repeatedly. The true source of this discipline is allowing the Holy Spirit to do the work within.

Self-Control is Safety and Protection (Proverbs 25:28)

Pastor Todd leverages the wisdom of Solomon in Proverbs 25:28, providing a powerful visual metaphor: “A person without self-control is like a city with broken down walls”.

• Vulnerability Defined: Back then, fortified city walls were the primary means of protection against enemies. A city without walls was extremely vulnerable, subject to being “pillaged, plumaged, and stolen from all the time”.
• Real-World Consequences: Lacking self-control makes a person vulnerable in every moment. This vulnerability can manifest in immediate setbacks (one text message setting you back 10 years), physical health issues (diseases caused by poor eating habits like frequent food court visits), or compromised vision.
• Self-Control is Safety: The key point derived from this verse is that “self-control is safety”. Viewing self-control as protection helps shift the perspective away from the negative connotation of the word “controlling,” which often carries worldly baggage related to systems or people telling you what to do.

Combating Fear and Compromise

1. Self-Control vs. Fear

The sources connect self-control directly to overcoming fear, drawing on 2 Timothy 1:7: “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but… power, love, and a sound mind”. The ESV version and the original language equate a “sound mind” with self-control.

• Fear as Undisciplined Thoughts: Fear is defined as “undisciplined thoughts”—thoughts that lack self-control. Whether it’s the fear of a dark room, the future, or marriage, self-control involves training one’s thoughts around “what God says about the future” instead of succumbing to irrational anxieties.

2. Self-Control vs. Success

A principle derived from Proverbs 16:32 is that “self-control is better than success”.

• Kingdom Priority: It is better to have self-control in a “little apartment” than to “run the whole city”. God prioritizes internal discipline and character over worldly measures of success, such as wealth, fame, or accumulation of earthly riches that cannot be taken to heaven.
• The Motive Check: The goal is to ask God for more self-control (patience, kindness, discerning needs) rather than solely focusing on material desires like houses, debt payoffs, or cars.

3. Self-Control vs. Compromise

Self-control is identified as “the only thing that combats compromise”.

• Compromise Defined: The word “compromise” contains the word “promise.” To experience compromise means you “give the promise away for free” (like receiving a comp ticket).
• Protecting Your Promise: Compromise occurs when a valuable promise (like one’s convictions, future, or calling) is sacrificed for temporary gratification. Without self-control, leaders, married people, and believers can be led into compromises—whether in relationships, manipulation of others, or small indulgences—that risk everything they have built, including credibility and family legacy.

Sin Control vs. Spirit Control

The central conflict of Christian living is framed as a daily battle: “Sin control or Spirit control”.

• The Controller Metaphor: Using the analogy of video game controllers, from Atari Pong to PS5, the constant upgrade of technology still requires a controller. In the same way, life constantly presents a battle for control.
• The Sin Nature: Our sinful nature (“natural inclination”) seeks to do evil and desires things opposite to the spirit, leading to pride, selfishness, gossip, and judgment. A life controlled by sin means “making decisions based on what feels natural”.
• The Spirit Nature: A Spirit-controlled life means “making decisions against ourselves” and against that natural inclination. The spirit, though alive at salvation, starts as a “newborn baby” and must be fed daily with the word and prayer to become strong enough to defeat the flesh.

Practical Path: From Accountability to Desire

The journey toward Spirit-controlled living is a progression from external support to internal change.

1. Accountability: Seeking external help, like a fitness trainer for health goals, provides accountability. This means being controlled by someone else for a time, even when the flesh resists (e.g., not wanting to do burpees).
2. Discipline: If accountability is maintained long enough, it morphs into discipline. Discipline is the ability to maintain action even without the external pressure of the accountability partner.
3. Desire: Eventually, discipline sustained through obedience leads to “desire”. The believer no longer just does the right thing out of obligation, but wants to do it. This transformation—the “magical moment” when discipline becomes desire—is the goal of Spirit-led obedience.

Example of Spirit-Led Life: The speaker illustrates Spirit control through intentional, vulnerable, and specific daily prayer—asking God for help with anger, financial anxiety, self-esteem, and interacting kindly with difficult people (like “Thomas” at the office). A Spirit-led life includes following the Spirit’s leading even in practical matters like what clothes to wear.

The Key: “Let Us Follow the Spirit’s Leading”

The culmination of the message is found in Galatians 5:25: “Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives”.

• The Choice to “Let”: The word “let” highlights that the believer has control and must consciously allow the Spirit to lead. We must actively decide to let the Spirit control our finances, jobs, relationships, and media consumption.
• Holy Spirit Invasion: This decision to “let” allows the Holy Spirit to “invade” the heart, mind, and spirit, leading the believer from sin to freedom, pain to promise, and isolation to family.
• Obedience over Amount: This level of faith requires “one word obedience” to God’s specific instructions, whether that involves stopping a bad habit (like fast food), starting a Bible study, or participating in the Crazy Fruit Offering. The value of the offering is not in the currency, but in the obedience. Consequences of obedience are “so amazing” because they lead to God’s faithfulness and blessings (which are more than just money), proving that God is already at work on the solution before the person even obeys (as illustrated by the story of the exact amount being returned 60 seconds after giving).

The message concludes with a call to add areas where self-control is needed to their Crazy Faith Card, believing God will replace grief with peace and align their words with His word. Receiving Jesus Christ is presented as the ultimate decision to trade a sin-controlled life for a Spirit-controlled life, finally having the option to choose freedom.