Did You Know Self Care Can Impact Your Purpose?

Self-care includes all the choices we make for ourselves or our families to preserve our physical, spiritual, emotional, and mental health.

Written 6/2018

Sometimes the best self-care is sending my children to camp!

Let me preface that saying I am a stay at home mom who homeschools 2 teens and 1 elementary school child.  WOW that is ... Let me take a moment.  

OK

Let me put some scripture to this before I lose you.

And He withdrew Himself into the wilderness and prayed.  Luke 5:16

For in six days, the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.   Exodus 20:11

Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”  Mark 6:31  (best plans sometimes get changed the people saw them and followed.  Jesus proceeded to feed the 5 thousand.  But the point is Jesus wanted them to get some rest.)

 

 

 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”  Psalm 46:10.

I am with my children close to 24 hours a day 7 days a week.  So we both needed a break.   We finished school last week and now we go to month and a half break.  I am looking forward to being able to say

• yes we can sit around and do nothing or

• yes we can go for the long walk today and

• yes we can go in that store and take as long as we want.

I realize self-care is essential.   Earlier this year I read “Divine Direction 7 decisions that will change your life” by Craig Groeschel and decided one of the decisions I needed to make was self-care. 

I have not done well with that. But I need to get better at it because I am to be salt and light. 

 

 Self-care impacts your purpose.

Remember your purpose (Love God, Love People and Serve).

Are you doing that well?  

 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.  John 13:35

People should recognize us by our actions.  What is the saying...

Remember the fruits of the spirit. 

 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

or the NIV version

That is what people are to see in us.

When we are tired and frustrated and on that last nerve we need to step back.  Back into God's Arms and his rest.  

• Because yelling at the customer service lady is not showing Christ love.

• Because fussing at the kids about trivial items is not showing Christ love.

• Because berating your co-worker for bringing fish to the office and smelling up the break room is not showing Christs love. (yes that is horribly specific forgive me, Father)

• Because ministering to widows or your children is more important than Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

• Because cheating, lying and stealing trying to get that next contract for your business does not show Christ love.

• Because doing sub-par work at your work is not showing Christ love.

 

 I read this in a Priscilla Shirer devotional "Quiet time is not an excuse of the lazy but a wise investment for the diligent."   that is so right.  If you are spent you cannot give God your best and he deserves nothing less.  

I am learning to recognize that in different seasons of my life the amount of time between fill-ups will change.  You need a lot more gas when you drive city streets than on the highway.  So if you have a ton of things going on you may burn out quicker.  Take the time.  The season you are in is important God would not have you there if was not. 

 

 So stop and rest and while resting keep focused on… 

 

Self-care means remembering with JESUS you are enough.  

There is no one you need to be impressing. 

Our value does not come from what we do but what JESUS did. 

The grace extended to us, that saves us (hallelujah!) means more work is not the goal. 

Is the reason you do not take rest is because of what YOU are trying to accomplish in your own strength or are you leaning on God? 

God works with people who we would never pick because it brings out our faith and grace among other things. 

Faith is taking the first step when you cannot see the whole staircase.

But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they. Acts 15:11

You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.  Galatians 5:10

Grace - undeserved favor given to us by GOD.

So increase your faith and grace and let go & let God.