Why Self-Care Is The Ultimate Sign of Resilience
The compassion Jesus demonstrated toward the disciples when He told them to rest, is the same compassion He is extending to you. He wants you to take care of yourself.
Welcome to the 59th post of The Aim and Soar Life, a weekly newsletter about faith, personal growth, and lifestyle that provides actionable, relatable, and biblically rooted content to help you live abundantly and GROW YOU. GOD’S WAY.
Greetings!
If I asked you when was the last time you engaged in self-care, I wonder what your response would be.
Would you have difficulty recalling a time when you were able to refresh and rejuvenate your body and mind?
What if I asked you how often you engage in self-care? What would your response be? Sometimes? Hardly ever?
Self-Care is more than bubble baths and candles. It also includes practicing stillness, praying, and meditating on God’s word. Self-care can even be a day you set aside to do absolutely nothing at all (Saturday is mine).
Like most of my friends, I am a mid-lifer. Some of us are responsible for helping to take care of our parents and grandchildren while working full-time jobs. Life can cause you to become frazzled rather quickly when you have a lot on your plate, and burnout can be a tell-tale symptom of self-neglect.
When I was a practicing clinician, we had a saying, “Take care of the caregiver.” It’s a mantra that reminded us as therapists, that we are no good to anyone else if we don’t properly care for ourselves.
Even Jesus stole away to be alone and pray. He even encouraged his disciples to rest. That’s self-care!
30 The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. 31 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.”
32 So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place.
Mark 6:30-32, NIV
Does that text from the Bible sound familiar? Have you ever had a day so busy that you didn’t even get a chance to eat?
As you develop and practice resilience, I encourage you to do what Jesus told his disciples to do—get some rest! Take care of yourself in a way that feels rejuvenating to you.
Life gets hectic. Sometimes it feels like it’s spinning out of control with demands on your time and additional environmental stressors like financial instability, violence in the world, and concern for your family members. You may be feeling like there is not enough of you to go around.
Guess what?
God doesn’t want you all frazzled and discombobulated because you are burning the candle at both ends and not taking care of yourself!
You can’t be resilient if you run on fumes constantly.
Yes, God can give you supernatural strength to do anything He has called you to do, but He knows you are living in a human body that requires rest. The compassion Jesus demonstrated toward the disciples when He told them to rest, is the same compassion He is extending to you. He wants you to take care of yourself.
Self-Care is the ultimate sign of resilience because it does two main things for you:
1. Self-Care Reminds You That You Are Not Superhuman
The most interesting (and funny) thing I saw this week was a video of a robot that “collapsed” after being in use doing manual labor for over 20 hours! I said to myself, “Hey even robots need to rest!”
The poor thing desperately needed self-care! LOL.😂
You are precious to God. He doesn’t want you out here collapsing like Mr. Robot. 😂
You may have been conditioned to feel unworthy if you don’t appear to be “handling” everything that comes your way.
I call it Superman (or Superwoman) Syndrome.
You’ve got this erroneous belief that you and only you can save the day.
That is a prescription for disaster. Sorry to burst your bubble.
You are not superhuman and you deserve to have time to replenish. Doing otherwise puts you at the center and not God. If you have the mindset that you must do everything all the time without taking care of yourself, you are operating outside of God’s will by putting too much emphasis on your strength as opposed to relying on His strength.
God can and will minister to you in the quiet moments you take to be still. Take Jesus up on His offer to you.
2. Self-Care Allows You to Connect with God
Years ago, I experienced what is now referred to as the “Sunday Scaries.” I was having a mini breakdown on a Sunday evening because I had spent the whole weekend doing chores and driving my son across town. It was time to prepare for work the next day, and I was exhausted.
Alone in my room, I burst into tears.
Instantly, I became nervous and anxious. There was an unsettling feeling in the pit of my stomach. I wondered how I was going to continue working if this was going to happen to me every Sunday. It was doom and gloom every Sunday evening. I felt miserable.
Then I felt the Lord telling me, “You don’t rest.”
I had been a busybody. I hadn’t been taking care of myself. And I was paying for it with anxiety.
I cried and I prayed that evening. Afterward, I resolved to rest on Saturdays from that day forward. Saturday is my sabbath. It’s the one day when I don’t allow myself to be preoccupied with the world. I focus on the things that bring joy to my heart, like sleeping (oh how I love to sleep!😍), reading, writing, or coloring. And of course, I pray to God and wait for Him to respond to me.
God often speaks when we are quiet and still, not running around like chickens with their heads cut off. It’s hard to hear when you are busy bodying.
Taking the time to be still, allows you to connect with God. You are calm and at peace and can sincerely focus on Him. Time alone with God replenishes you and prepares you to go back out into the world and do what He has called you to do.
You are God’s masterpiece. He cares about the little things that affect you. He has called you to be bold and courageous because He is with you. He knows you can serve Him better when you care for the temple where He resides—inside you! You get one body on this side of heaven. Don’t forget to “Take care of the caregiver.” That’s you! Because self-care is the ultimate sign of resilience.
Check out this month’s other posts on Resilience:
Developing A Spirit of Resilience: Part One
Developing A Spirit of Resilience: Part Two
Until Next Time,
GROW YOU. GOD’S WAY.
Sherrhonda😍
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