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What does it mean to love yourself?

christinepoper

Updated: Mar 7, 2022


"Love yourself!" "Self-care!" "Self-love!"


We can all react very differently when we hear words and phrases like these.

You may experience a queasy, yucky feeling rising up in you and if so, you've probably experienced the unhealthy, selfish version of what it means to 'love yourself.'


On the other hand you may hear these words and get passionate about it because you've experienced freedom from some level of self-hatred, and your journey towards healing involved the hearing of these phrases.


I understand both and I believe both responses are valid. Context is king!


So today, the context is this: the Body of Christ and what it means for me to love this Body... my Body. (See last post for an intro)



I was listening to a podcast last week and the host was sharing about her journey from hating her body to loving it.


She was challenged at some point, by a therapist, to lay her hands on the parts of herself that she disliked and to acknowledge them. Not only that, but to begin to speak lovingly to those parts.


Sound a little cheesy?! It did to me BUT it's an incredibly powerful exercise for those who have struggled in this area. Your actions and your words bring a shift in your perspective that brings a shift in your thoughts. And a shift in your thoughts brings a shift to your actions.


"Love your neighbor as yourself" Leviticus 19:18

Parts of the Body of Christ have been divided on so many things for such a long time. What would it look like if we reached out and 'touched' those in the church that we have ignored, struggled with or even despised? What if we spoke words of love over each other despite our disagreements on, yes, even important subjects?


If we loved one another with how we spoke about and treated one another; with how we handle the uncomfortable feelings within us when there is conflict or disagreement; with how we choose to think honorably about and attribute value to one another... the world would surely know that Christ lives in us. And if we were able to do that within our own Body, how much more would we be able to make an impact on this world?


It starts with me... I'm SO very aware of that. It's my heart issue and has to be treated as such. We each need to take responsibility for what goes on within our very own selves.



So this is the journey I'm on:


- I'm challenging myself in how I respon

- I'm learning to be at rest when I disagree with something and even when I notice things that are wrong within a brother or sister in Christ..


- I'm learning to sit with the uncomfortable feelings and ask myself questions about why I'm feeling so rattled.


- I'm learning how to speak truth without compromise, but without losing my compassion, and to challenge people while remaining 'on their team.'


- I'm learning to never lose value for people or their story, despite their differing beliefs.


- I'm learning to be confident in walking and sharing in my differing beliefs, though I may lose value in their eyes.


- I'm learning to listen to other's opinions that differ from mine and not feel like I have to convince them to change.


- I'm learning to see myself in others and recognize my struggles in their struggles.


- I'm learning to reach out and 'touch' the parts of my Body that I'm tempted to overlook, undervalue or ignore - with acknowledgement, compassion and prayer.


- I'm learning to direct my thoughts and speech to those of love.



It's a challenging road and I wouldn't say I've done it perfectly so far! But I sure would love to have you be a companion with me as I walk down it.


Final thought: I guess self-love really isn't that detached from loving others.








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