12 “Everything is permissible for me”—but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me”—but I will not be mastered by anything.
What a wonderful principle. I am free in Christ, but freedom still has constraints. Some things I could do are just not good for me. I am free to hit my hand with a hammer. I am free to smoke cigarettes. I am free to overeat. I am free to do many things, but I don’t want to do things that will negatively affect my eternity. I also don’t want to participate in things that could end up taking away my freedom, those things that would become my master. I am free to drink alcohol, but alcohol can become a master. We can get addicted, so that the alcohol commands us. The alcohol makes us go buy more and consume. I will not be mastered by anything. Right now my weight is mastering me. I know in my mind that I need to take off about 15-20 pounds, but I have unfortunately taught body to overeat. I have lacked the discipline to tell my body “no” when it says “feed me.” I have also trained my body to crave certain kinds of food that are not healthy. My body now tells my hands to grab the wrong kinds of food. I recognize I am feeding a monster that is mastering me. I am free to be 500 pounds, but I want to be 155-160 pounds. I don’t want food to master me. I want to be in charge of my desires. I don’t want my desires to control me. My tendency is to come home and vegetate, wasting precious time. That desire to be inactive has mastered me. I must fight against it in order for it to not master my evenings and weekends. Anything mastering you that is not beneficial to you?
The Arnold Journey 