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The self is lauded as the source of our vitality and, therefore, our aim to protect. Modern messaging flatters us with so-called understanding of all our demands. You’re encouraged to guard your time and energy under the guise of preventing exhaustion and burnout. You’re convinced that setting boundaries with others is the way to protect your “self.”
Sadly, God’s daughters have taken the bait, participating in worldly wisdom like: You can’t pour from an empty cup. You have to take care of yourself first before you can take care of others. You have to learn to say no!
For the daughter of God – who believes upon the risen Lord, Jesus Christ, for her salvation – none of this is biblical.
Every musing that appeals to your ego contains a nugget of truth, but only a nugget. All else is worldly corruption that tempts us to become gods unto ourselves. Remember what happened to Adam and Eve when they took the same bait? Of course we do. That’s why it’s critical that we don’t entertain popular messaging that depends on human reasoning. It always leads to destruction of self, not care.
As a daughter of the Most High, you’re invited to “take care of yourself” by standing guard against the wiles of the enemy – who works through worldly ego-stroking messaging – through God’s power, wisdom, and discernment, not your own.
What we need is an appeal to Truth, not an appeal to self. What you need is not to learn how to take care of yourself but to know and rely upon the One who promises to take care of you.
But the only way you can do that is if you first know God’s wisdom, which comes by seeking Him diligently via daily reading and meditation on His Word.
Isaiah 55:8-9 says, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.”
Psalm 119:105 says, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”
Jesus Himself prayed for us when He said, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17).
How could we possibly think that we could know the safe way to go without looking to the Almighty whose ways are higher, whose ways are Truth?
The Word of God is your “self-care” manual that will tell you to:
Be led by the Spirit (not yourself) who leads you in all Truth (John 16:5-15).
Consistently charge and recharge by prioritizing time alone with the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit (not yourself) (Mark 1:35).
Be obedient to what God calls you to do (not being obedient to what the world tells you (John 14:21).
Set boundaries for yourself that agree with your identity in Christ (Colossians 3:3)
Let the Lord be your “cup” and what fills your cup (Psalm 16:5), not your human understanding of what “makes sense.”
Seek first the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33 ), not ways to care for yourself.
Remember, His yoke is easy, and His burden is light (Matthew 11:28-30). So, if you really want to take care of yourself, look to Jesus and let Him do the work so you can simply rest in Him.
Dr. Sherri Yoder (aka, Dr. Sherri) is a seeker and teacher of God's wisdom. She is a former Clinical Psychologist turned Discipleship Teacher & Coach who emboldens and equips her fellow sisters in Christ with biblically informed Truth and practical applications for living the abundant life Jesus promises to His followers in John 10:10 by operating in the Mindset of the Redeemed.
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