Love For Ourselves

Stop.

Place your hands over your heart and feel its beat. Close your eyes and breathe. With every breath, remind yourself that you are loved and worthy.

Listen.

[Jesus said], “’You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

Matthew 22:37-40

Reflect.

Valentine’s Day is tomorrow, so our devotions this week are about love. We’ve talked about loving God and loving others. But today, the day before we celebrate love in all its forms, we need to consider one more person to love: you. 

Jesus says that the greatest commandment is to love God. He says the second commandment is just like it: “love your neighbor as yourself”. We spend time considering how important it is to love God and to love our neighbor. These are cornerstones of faith. 

But Jesus says we love our neighbor as yourself. We must love ourselves. It’s not self-centered or proud to love who God has made us to be. If we think nothing of ourselves, how can we ever hope to treat our neighbors with kindness and accountability? If we don’t know how to show gratitude and respect to the very gift of our bodies and abilities, how can we ever honor the fullness of God’s creation in all its forms?  

Be filled with love, friends – for your God, for your neighbor, and for yourself. You are God’s gift to the world.

Pray.

God, thank you for making me exactly as I am. I praise you for your grace and mercy made new to me each day. I will continue to treat myself with kindness out of gratitude for the love you show me. Amen.

Carry On.

What’s one small habit you can build into your day to encourage you to love yourself? Quiet time? A new hobby? Exercise? Whatever it is, make sure you do it in love and care for who God made you to be.