I read about a cartoon once that showed a little boy attempting to lead a huge Saint Bernard dog on a leash. The dog was dragging the boy along behind and obviously in a different direction from which the boy wanted to go. The young fellow was bracing his feet and turning to the dog and angrily shouting, "Let's get this straight! You are my dog. I'm not your boy." Denying ourselves of some things in life is a lot like this boy--they can pull us in the opposite direction we want to go, but we must preserver.

We all recognize that somehow we must, if we are going to be successful, control our desires. How else can we "be all that we can be?"

When I was in High School is was a wrestler. My coach must have thought a lot of me, because he kept saying that I was going to be successful. But it seemed that every year something kept me from my success. My first year I didn't do well because of my inexperience. The next year I suffered a concussion during tournament that took me away from my goal. My junior year I was plagued with pulled back muscles. So, my senior year I was determined to do my best. I denied myself of many things that year in order to be successful. My denial helped me to have a great season.

Such discipline is necessary in every great endeavor of life, including our spiritual growth.