C. S. Lewis Quotes

Men are victims of their own impulses.

Character isn't inherited. One builds it daily by the way one thinks and acts, thought by thought, action by action. If one lets fear or hate or anger take possession of the mind, they become self-forged chains.

A man's worst difficulties begin when he is able to do as he likes.

If you decide that you cannot beat a temptation, what you are really doing is giving yourself permission to be irresponsible.

Don't waste time asking God to keep you from doing things. Don't do them.

It is a fact that the majority of a man's griefs comes about through lack of self-control.

The ability to subordinate an impulse to a value is the essence of the proactive person.

It is hard to fight desire; but to control it is the sign of a reasonable man.

Any man who can't control his thoughts can't control his actions, and any man who can't control his actions isn't safe in society.

If you neglect to exercise self-control, you are not only likely to injure others, but you are sure to injure yourself!

Self-control is the ability to restrain a laugh at the wrong place.

If you did everything your mind told you to do, you do some really strange stuff. You'll probably be in jail, you'll be in trouble. But, it's all about control. We all have to control our feelings. That's the thing that separates us from animals.

Self-control is solely a matter of thought-control!

If you keep your eye on the doughnut and do your work, that's all you can control. You can't control any of what's out there, outside yourself.

There are those who say that temptation can be barricaded beyond the door. The ones who think that stray desires can be driven out of the heart like the moneychangers from the temple. Maybe they can, if you patrol your weak points day and night, don't look, don't smell, don't dream.

If I’ve already thought through a situation and have a response prepared ahead of time in the event temptation rears its ugly head, it is that much easier to resist.

One of the early signs of sophistication is not giving way to all inclinations but rather sending your emotions to school so they will learn how to behave.

Each day look into your conscience and amend your faults; if you fail in this duty you will be untrue to the Knowledge and Reason that are within you. Keep a watchful eye over yourself as if you were your own enemy; for you cannot learn to govern yourself, unless you first learn to govern your own passions and obey the dictates of your conscience.

A man who cannot control his temper is not very likely to control his passions, and no matter what his pretensions in religion, he moves in daily life very close to the animal plane.

It's natural for humans to suppress urges, for when our desires are left unchecked they lead to broken relationships, prison time, and forest fires.

A man were better relate himself to a statue or picture than to suffer his thoughts to pass in smother.

He who is not master of his own thoughts is not accountable for his own deeds.

It is not enough to be abstinent with other people. You also have to be abstinent alone. The Bible says that lust in your heart is committing adultery. So you can't - a word that rhymes with congratulate - without lust.

The use of self control is like the use of brakes on train. It is useful when you find yourself in wrong direction but merely harmful when the direction is right

I've learned to check the hasty words that rise to my lips, and when I feel that they mean to break out against my will, I just go away for a minute, and give myself a little shake for being so weak and wicked.