Embracing Jesus While Practicing Self-Care

The idea of self-care is one that many of us desire, but also struggle to implement into our daily lives. Self-care can be seen as a selfish, me-focused, a denial of our need for Jesus – the only One who can truly satisfy. But in embracing Jesus, does that mean we need to deny all self-care, since he is the one he who provides and supplies all of our needs? What role do we play?

Can we embrace Jesus while practicing self-care? What does the Bible say?

Our culture is overwhelmed, well, with being overwhelmed, busy, stressed, and exhausted. Do you fit into any of those categories? Our society praises busyness, multi-tasking, and a full planner. And rest? That’s seen as something for those who are weak. Who can’t do it all. Yet our culture also preaches self-care. Where vacations, reading the latest bestseller, grabbing that latte, and having the membership to that gym, is prized. So where’s the balance?

Self-care is pretty self-explanatory. It’s anything you do to take of yourself, like eating right, exercising, prioritizing self, etc. But where does this idea fit into the concept of faith? I write this with a belief that Jesus IS the only one who fully satisfies. Who can only provide true rest and contentment. So what is the purpose of all of these “self-care” actions then? Are they worthless? Selfish? A disgrace to our Creator?

I believe it is possible to practice self-care while still living a life that is fully devoted to Jesus, and looking to him as the ultimate satisfier and provider. It all goes back to recognizing who we are, who we are not, and who HE is.

Who We Are

We are fearfully and wonderfully made by a perfect God [Psalm 139]. We are made for more than what our human minds can comprehend. We are made not for ourselves, but for God, all while presenting our bodies as living sacrifices, as it says in Romans 12. Therefore, we are made to serve our risen Savior and not ourselves. We are called to take care of the temple, our bodies, and to honor God WITH our bodies [1 Corinthians 6:19-20]. And in caring for our bodies, we do so by taking time to care for them. Taking time to eat right, exercise, rest, and inspiring our minds, not for ourselves, but to honor and respect the very One who created us.

Think of it this way. If you have given someone a gift, you want them to be a good steward over it. Yes, it was a gift, but you still want to see them respect it and take care of it, because it was given out of love. Same with God. He has generously given us the ability to care for our bodies, so how are we to respond? By simply taking care of them.

Who We Are Not

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. [Matthew 11: 28-30]

We can’t do it all. We all get weary. We feel the burdens of this world. We are limited in our abilities to truly care for ourselves. Nothing of this world can satisfy. No human. No book. No gym. And this is where our culture has it wrong. It teaches us that WE are the ones in control of ourselves, that we are to be independent, denying the need of needing any help. That only WE can provide that care, through buying the right type of food, going to the right gym, using the right products, and reading the correct books. But that power, that care, that provision, can only fully come from our Savior, Jesus Christ. We just can’t do it all. We are never enough. What we do is never “enough.” Because we are looking at the wrong source and not THE Source.

Who He Is

Jesus is the answer. The source of our “enough”. In practicing self-care, we in turn, are embracing Jesus (or should be, if done with the right motive). Realizing that he is the one and only true source of peace, joy, love, rest, and refreshment, is embracing the power that only Christ can give. The all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving God, wants to tuck us under His wing, so we can experience that true peace and love in him. He is the ultimate peace-giver. His death on the cross, bridged the gap of who we are not, and who we are. Because of his grace, we can live debt free. Burden-free. Weary-free. Worry-free. All because of that one act of obedience – death on a cross. Who he is, is exactly what we need. Nothing more and nothing else. He is enough.

So where does this take us? What does all of this mean when it comes to self-care then? I think what it comes down to is that instead of seeing these “self-care” options as THE answer, we can see them as helpful pieces to lead us to THE ANSWER – Jesus Christ.

Should you feel guilty if you want to go for a walk or go to the gym? Absolutely not. It’s all about the motive. If you are doing it solely for yourself, ask yourself how I can do “this” for Jesus? Take exercising for example. How can you embrace Jesus? You are taking care of the temple. It’s giving you the energy you need to serve his people. Should you feel guilty if you want to read a book or go on vacation? Again, what is the motive of your heart? Is it to encourage your faith? To take time away to refresh and point your mind towards Jesus? To encourage your marriage, the covenantal promise you made before God to protect and cherish that relationship?

Not only that, but the psalms are filled with praises about God’s creation. Go back to Genesis 1 and you will see that God is proud of all he has made – so we should enjoy it! He wants us to! But it’s all about the whys. I want to insert here, that all things in moderation, am I right? We aren’t being good stewards of what God has given us, if we spend our life savings on one trip. We aren’t being good stewards over what God has given us, if we spend our money frivolously, not taking to heart that even that very dime, is a gift from him, and him alone. It’s all a gift.

Ultimately, it comes down to the fact that the focus needs to be taken off of ourselves and put on our Creator. I once heard it said that humbleness isn’t thinking less of ourselves, but thinking of ourselves, less. When we are wanting to do what our culture labels as “self-care”, is it purely for our own good or for the love of our Father? I’m a firm believer that we can’t care for others if we don’t care for ourselves. Let me leave you with a story from my own life.

After I had our daughter, I went through severe heart failure, to the point where I was needing to have open heart surgery a week after giving birth. Thankfully through some really hard days and medication, I was able to recover enough to not need that open heart surgery. A few days after having our daughter, as I was explaining how hard it was to care for our daughter to my family physician, while dealing with my heart issues, she kindly reminded me that in order to care for our daughter, I needed to get healthy, first. I couldn’t fully care for her, if I didn’t care fully for myself. That’s when I realized I needed more than what I was doing. I needed Jesus. I needed to let go of the “do it all” attitude. I needed to allow others in my life to help me. I needed to rest. To sit and just “be”, even if it meant holding our child while she napped, so I could get an hour of sleep. All so that I could care for the body and heart that God had given me. In order to be a good mom, I had to be a submitting daughter of the King and accept what God had allowed in my life. And that was through doing things that would bring me rest, so that I could ultimately serve my Savior, through my calling as a mom and daughter of the King. I had to practice self-care – care about myself and the temple God had given me – so that I could care for my daughter and my family. I admit I failed at this miserably, but I quickly learned that I just couldn’t do it all!

And I wrestle with the very idea of self-care every day. I constantly have to check my motives. I constantly have to ask myself why do I care about this so much? Is it solely for my own gain? For my own clout? Or is it because I want to be the best I can be for my King? Do I strive to be the best I can be, to honor and glorify HIS name? Or my own? Do I take time to rest so I can regain the energy I need to keep going?

Jesus rested. Jesus encouraged his disciples to rest. Jesus withdrew to various places to pray. As always, Jesus is the perfect example of what it means to embrace his Father and practice self-care. He used that self-care time to foster his relationship with his Father. To get direction for the next step. To care for the temple God gave him, so that he was ready for the next instruction.

Embrace Jesus, my friend. Let him uphold you. In him, you will truly find that ultimate satisfaction. You can embrace Jesus by resting. You can embrace Jesus by going for a walk. You can embrace Jesus while doing your favorite hobby. Just remember that in doing these things, and doing them for him, you will find that satisfaction you are looking for – that peace, joy, and contentment, that can only be found in him.