Self-care is how you show yourself love

Self-care is how you show yourself love. 

Self-love is not the slippery slope to hell and havoc. Self-love will not unhinge your grasp on reality and responsibility. It will not make you toxically selfish. It will not lead you to a life of carnal gratification at the expense of others and your soul. The opposite is true: 

Self-love is how you heal, not only your own wounds but the wounds of others, too. And this inner, organic, peaceful healing reaches its green and blooming tendrils deep into the fabric of the universe. Healing is never an isolated experience. It spills out onto everything around it. It can’t help but overflow. 

Think of it this way:
Love is not an item. It’s not a thing. It’s not something you can divide and separate and send some over there and none in the other direction.
Love is a flow, a river, a dance, a way of life.
Love is of one piece. There is no such thing as worldly love and Godly love and carnal love and holy love.

There is just love. 

The writer of First John said: 

“My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know God if you don’t love… No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and Gods love becomes complete in us.”

Rumi said: 

"Love is the bridge between you and everything."

Julian of Norwich said: 

“Between God and the soul there is no between.”

She went on to say: 

“Where do we begin? Begin with the heart.”

God is love.

To love yourself is the simple and holy act of allowing God to be where God already is; allowing God to love what God already loves; allowing yourself to love to what God deemed loveable from the very beginning: 

you. 

Self-love is a spiritual practice. The practicalities of it involve many wild and wondrous activities, and also some patient and wholesome disciplines, and also some choices that seem unexciting and dutiful, and also boundaries that are scary and intimidating and seem like a bit much. But you? You are a lot. You are the whole world. You are worth it. 

John Phillip Newell said: 

“The whole cosmos is a Self-giving of God. And we will find our place in the great dance only to the extent that we love.”

Love is how we join in on what God is doing; Love is how you embrace The Divine; Love is how you keep on discovering who and what God is and who you are, too. So my friend, my prayer for you is that you would love and that you would dance and that you would allow yourself to participate in this holy life that is yours to live. 

Mindful Prompt: God is love. To love yourself is the simple and holy act of allowing God to be where God already is, allowing God to love what God already loves, allowing yourself to love to what God deemed loveable from the very beginning: you. 

From my upcoming series, "The Spiritual Practice of Loving Yourself" this week with a subscription in the App.

Written by Liz Milani.
Instagram: @thepracticeco