Written By: Mary Martinez
I’m sure you’ve seen books, posts, blogs, and articles talking about the importance of self-care. Honestly, the first time I heard this phrase I laughed and thought, who has time for that? With a husband who works away from home for months at a time, as well as fulfilling his duties as a Navy Reservist, I’m often left to “man the ship” of homeschooling and caring for three active boys on my own. Because of our current family situation, I have to admit self-care has been at the bottom of my to-do-list.
If you are like me, when you hear or see the phrase “self-care” you probably think of things like getting your hair done, taking a bath, reading a book, getting a massage or pedicure, exercising, or getting more sleep. And you would be right! These are all great ways to take care of yourself. There is value in taking care of our bodies, doing things that we enjoy and allowing ourselves to decompress. But there is so much more to self-care than a simple pedicure or bubble bath.
A few months back, I decided I needed to take a little more time for myself, so I started to research different avenues of self-care. During this process, God revealed to me that there was more to self-care than the world would like us to focus on or indulge in. He revealed a whole new facet to self-care, one that we (including me) often neglect, our “Spiritual-Care.”
What are you doing daily to nurture, nourish, and care for your spiritual health? How are you letting God pour into your life, your heart, mind, and soul? Are you being intentional about the amount of time you are reading the Word, praying, worshiping, sitting in His presence, and letting Him fill and refresh you?
How do you pour out spiritually into the lives of your loved ones if your cup isn’t filled first? The bottom line is that when we care for ourselves, we are better able to be the nurturer and caretaker God designed us to be. Not only will we have more to give, but we are also better equipped to face the trials of this world. Taking care of ourselves goes beyond physical, emotional, and mental care. We have the source of living water at our fingertips, and we need to tap into it. Only Jesus can fill every aspect of our lives, mind, body, and soul. We need to prioritize our Spiritual-Care overall care because through Him, all other things flow.
“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his
heart will flow rivers of living water.'” (John 7: 38)
My prayer for you comes from Romans 15:13:
“I pray that God, the source of hope, will FILL you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Written By: Mary Martinez
