Do I Love Me?
Do you love yourself?
This is a question most of us do not think about and if we do, we dismiss it because if we answered “Yes” then we are egotistical and/or narcissistic. Psychologists and God say I should love myself!
Jesus answered:
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. This is the first and most important commandment. The second most important commandment is like this one. And it is, “Love others as much as you love yourself.” All the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets are based on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:37-40 (CEV)
Love those I meet just like I love myself. Jesus is telling me a truth that I would probably like to explain away or ignore. I cannot love others if I do not love myself! When I look in the mirror, what do I see? Do I list the imperfections and lacks without a second thought? Do I stand there and think and think before I come up with one compliment for myself?
I can blame my childhood, my spouse, the twisted way the world defines beauty and success but the bottom line is how I perceive myself. And it is a personal choice. I can decide that the world’s definition is correct and I fall short and beat myself up the rest of my life as I constantly focus on my short comings. Or I can acknowledge that I am not perfect by the world’s standards and no one is. This opens the door to consider who and what I really am.
Who will I allow to determine who and what I am? If I believe a person even myself, the truth is subjective and flawed. My Creator is the only One who knows every cell of me. He put me together. What does He say about me? Can God lie? Does He love one child more than another?
If you have forgotten how much you are loved, go back and read your Creator’s words in John 13-17 and 1 John 3. The Father love you. The Father loves me. I love me! And you…
