Once God freed me from bondage to
codependency and Satan's lies that others would only love me if I gave myself
sacrificially for them, He started me on a liberating journey that taught me
how to love others as Jesus loves me.
He taught me that I have value in
and of myself regardless of what anyone else thought of me or did for me.
Self-care became part of my routine instead of an afterthought that never
materialized.
I learned that I am not
responsible for the happiness of others, and to think that I am was an idol in
my life. I had to lay my preconceived ideas at the altar of God's truth and
learn a whole new way of living.
It is only sinful to care for our
self, if we are self-absorbed and self-centered. We are unbalanced,
narcissistic and selfish if we think only of our self or of our self first and
foremost all of the time.
A husband is to love his wife as
he loves his own body; and yet, if he hates himself or does not value himself;
then he will never learn to love his wife or anyone else either (Ephesians
5:28-29).
For most people, however, it is
natural to care for their needs as well as the needs of others. Some give to
get, but many nurturing, caring people give to bless others; and they end up
receiving a blessing in the giving.
Prayer:
Father God, You taught us to
enter Your rest, so that we are not driven by stress, perfectionism and
enabling other people. We have Your abundant life, which starts at the moment
of our Salvation (John 10:10). Thank You for teaching us to grow, develop and
succeed in this life by living by Your principles.
Thank You for teaching me that the
more I value myself as You value me, the more I teach other people to cherish
me too. As I come to You to meet my emotional, mental, relational and spiritual
needs, You help me to set my priorities in the correct order, You remove from
my thinking the satanic drives of perfectionism and guilt, and You lead me by
Your Spirit to help others only when it is Your will for me to do so.
Thought for the Day:
We cannot nurture our self or
anyone else if we are burdened by guilt and deprivation, or stressed and overworked
all the time; we can learn to nurture our self and others by watching how Jesus
lived a balance of self-care and ministry to others.
