Selah: Loving Yourself

‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’
(Matthew 22:39, ESV)

 

Introduction

For some of us, the very traits that make us care, dependable, and driven are the same ones that leave us feeling threadbare inside. We people-please until we forget what pleases us. We carry guilt like a second skin and offer no grace to ourselves. Our work and worth become the same thing. If that sounds familiar, we’re more prone to burning out. In this video Corin helps us guard against that.

⏵ Play the video: Loving Yourself Part 1

PART 1 | Reflection Questions

• Whose approval am I working hardest for? Am I driven by my own values and faith, or by the fear of letting others down?
• When things go wrong, how do I speak to myself? How do I differ when speaking to someone else facing the same issues?

Love your neighbour as you love yourself. In urban ministry we are committed to that first part of the commandment. But for some, the hard part is the second half of that scripture. Loving others? No problem. Loving myself? Erm… next question, please. God’s love doesn’t ask to show everyone else kindness and compassion, only for us to neglect ourselves. It’s not either/or. It’s both.

⏵ Play the video: Loving Yourself – Part 2

PART 2 | Reflection Questions

• In what ways do I struggle to believe that God’s acceptance of me is unconditional? Where am I trying to prove my self-worth?
• What would it look like to believe that I am someone God delights in, not just uses?

💬 Response activity

Write a letter to yourself (or record a voice note) from the perspective of someone who truly loves you (God, a close friend, a family member, your future healed self) Speak to yourself with kindness, understanding and no judgement. What do you need to hear right now?

🤔 Final thought

At the end of the day, after the noise of ambition and anxiety, after trying to prove yourself  there’s a place for you to belong. A place not earned by performance or taken away from you through failure. It’s not built on the success of reports and testimonies. It’s built with love. Jesus doesn’t want the idealised version of you. The one who gets it right every time. He wants you as you are. The real work isn’t striving to be worthy. The real work is learning to be loved. Unconditionally. So, let your prodigal heart come home to the father’s embrace. You’ve ran away long enough. You’re welcome here. In the father’s arms. You were made to be here.

🙏 Prayer

God,
You who are love,
Teach me to love my neighbour
But first show me how to love myself.
Help me love myself in the way I think.
Help me love myself in the way I speak to myself.
Show me how to love myself in the way I treat my body.
When I am in distress and need,
May I find a lifeline of your love
Deep inside of me.
Amen.

This devotional was written by Matt Britton, and the accompanying videos were written and presented by Corin Pilling.