Tuesday greetings!

Today I have a challenge for you.  It may sound a bit different then some of the other challenges you may have heard but it is just as important.

In my opinion, this may be one of the most important things you do for yourself.

We are also commanded to do this by Jesus himself!

What, oh what is this great challenge!?

BE SELFISH!

Now I know that this may sound a bit different than what you normally hear.

We typically associate being Christian with being nice and kind to others.  Yes, but there is so much more to being a Christian than that.

We will save that topic for a later date but still, we have these to contradicting ideas. 

Doing things for others and now this crazy thing that I am telling you to do, to be selfish.

Now, when I say to be selfish I am not saying that you should make everything about you at all times, everyday, and basically become a hedonist. 

But Matthew, why then are you telling us that we should be selfish.  I don’t remember that commandment, “Thou shalt be selfish.”  Yea, that doesn’t ring a bell…

Well, what if I were to ask you what the greatest commandment was?

Hopefully, you are thinking of that verse from Matthew 22:37-38.

“Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all you soul and with all your mind.’  This is the first and greatest commandment.”

Ok, yea, I am still not seeing the selfish part of that.

Well, that is where Matthew 22:39 comes in to play.

“And the second is like it: “’Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

Do you get it now?

Yes, we have all heard this and try to live it out by helping others and being a good neighbor and making sacrifices to be there for those that we care about.  But that does not mean to forget about yourself.

How can you love someone as yourself if you are not taking care of yourself?

Sometimes in our lives we may forget that part of the scripture.  We focus a lot on the neighbor’s part and we forget the ourselves part. 

Personally, I know that I struggle with this.  I have a hard time saying no to people, it is a minor miracle for me to ask for help, and normally keep things to myself.  On top of all of this…believe it or not, I am an introvert. 

Sometimes, I know that I need sometime to recharge but find it difficult to actually make that happen.

This may sound a little crazy but sometimes we need to allow ourselves time so we can take care of ourselves.  So that we are able to continue to care for others, we must take care of yourself.

So today, that is my challenge to you.

Today, be selfish and do something you.  If we are could to love others as ourselves…take a look at how you are caring for yourself and think about if you should spend some more time on you.