SELF-CARE.
What was your initial response when you read those words?
Did you immediately dismiss it?
Or laugh because the idea of self-care in your current life season feels impossible?
Did you roll your eyes because self-care is just for self-absorbed people who don’t care about others?
I think it’s so important to note our internal response to the idea of self-care. Because regardless of what our culture – or the church – has said to you, practicing self-care is NOT SELFISH.
How Self-Care Can Help us
Self-care actually increases our ability to love and serve other people! It fills our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual tanks so that we can love others out of the overflow of what has been poured into us.
Ultimately, practicing self-care is a way for us to come into agreement with the Lord that WE MATTER.
Unfortunately, the church has tended to magnify this idea of serving others and self-sacrifice to the point of total depletion and burnout. But if you look closely at Scripture, even Jesus knew when he needed to take a “time out” from His work and ministry to rest and be with the Father so that his tank could be filled.
Friends, if the Son of God had to practice self-care, I’m pretty sure that none of us are exempt.
I think Mercy UK’s CEO, Arianna Walker, said it best when she said, “How comfortable you are with self-care…is usually a reflection of your inner sense of self-worth and identity, and a core revelation that His gift of grace means we can be—not do, to be.”
Practical Steps to Better Self-Care
There are entire books on self-care, but I want to give you two simple steps that you can take today to start practicing it. I can tell you from personal experience that these two simple steps can change your life.
- Find out what energizes you.
- Put it on the calendar.
Two simple steps, but let’s break them down a little more…
First, find out what energizes you.
What gives you life? Are you an extrovert that is energized by being around people? Are you an introvert that is energized by being alone? Do you love gardening and having your hands in the dirt? Do you love running? Painting? Reading in a coffee shop?
Think about what feeds your soul and make a list. And if you can’t come up with a list right now, that’s okay. Just try to identify at least one thing.
Step Two is the most vital part of this process – PUT. IT. ON. THE. CALENDAR.
Whether you’re an all-digital kind of person or still living old-school with paper planners, get out your calendar (right now!) and set up a recurring appointment for self-care. You and I both know that if it’s not on the calendar, it’s not going to happen.
Once you have it on the calendar, here’s what you must do: Guard it with your life. It’s too crucial for your own health and for all of those around you. It must remain a priority.
Time for You
You don’t even have to know what you’re going to do during that time. You can simply enter “ME TIME” into your calendar. And then, when the volunteer coordinator at church calls to see if you can help with yet another church bake sale on Saturday at 2 PM, you can kindly and graciously share that you already have plans for Saturday at 2 PM. You don’t have to tell her that your plans are to read at a coffee shop or to paint in your garage. You can honestly share that you already have something scheduled for that time…something that is important enough not to allow it to budge off your calendar.
Does self-care have to be on the calendar every single day? No, that’s probably not realistic for most people. There’s a place for understanding your season of life and making a realistic plan for self-care.
When I was single, I could easily plan in weekly rhythms of self-care. I could do things like canoeing with friends on a Saturday or spending an entire afternoon at a coffee shop. Today, I am a full-time working mom with a 2-year-old and a 4-month-old. Let’s just say that self-care looks a little different these days!
But it’s just as important, if not more so. Dedicated time for self-care may only happen a couple of times per month now, and it may simply look like half an hour by myself at Starbucks before picking the kids up from daycare (or let’s be honest, some weeks it simply looks like getting to wash my hair!).
However, no matter what season you find yourself in, it’s vitally important that you schedule time to do the things that fill your soul and energize you.
Self-Care is Not Just For You
Friend, agree with the Lord that you matter. That your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health matter. Despite the fact that it’s called “self-care,” trust me when I say that this is not just for you. It’s also for your spouse, your children, your friends, your coworkers, and the people for which you serve and care. Just as everyone around you suffers when you’re depleted, everyone around you will reap the benefits of you being healthy and whole as you prioritize self-care!
Mercy Multiplied exists to provide opportunities for all to experience God’s unconditional love, forgiveness, and life-transforming power. We offer multiple programs and resources online and onsite designed to equip people to live free and stay free in Christ. For more information about the services we offer, click here.
Want more resources? Check out our MercyTalk podcast episode, “What is Freedom?”. For daily inspiration, follow us @MercyMultiplied on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!
