We are commanded to love our neighbor, as we love our self. All too often we skip past taking care of our self (our temple – physical, emotional, spiritual, mental) and go straight to serving others and we get burnt out. Perhaps in this day and age of “self-help“, Christians have been cautioned that taking care of ourselves is wrong, selfish, greedy, or not Christ-like. However, I believe the quote by David Banner, a psychologist and spiritual Director, states it best when he said: “Leaving the self out of Christian spirituality results in a spirituality that is not well grounded in experience.  It is, therefore, not well grounded in reality. Focusing on God while failing to know ourselves deeply may produce an external form of piety, but it will always leave a gap between appearance and reality.”

We cannot love other people if we don’t love ourselves. Loving ourselves will take understanding of our identity in Christ. Our value does not decrease based on us or someone else’s inability to see our worth. The truth is still the truth and we need to claim it. We need to truly understand and believe that our identity in Christ is that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. In order to help us claim those biblical truths, there are some affirmations listed below for us to meditate on, and praise God for:

• you are made in God’s image (Gen 1:26)
• you are made new (2 Cor 5:17)
• you are valuable (Luke 12:7) 
• you are secure (John 10:28)
• you are seen (Psalm 33:18)
• you are strong (2 Cor 12:10)
• you are chosen (1 Peter 2:9)
• you are accepted (Romans 15:7)
• you are blessed (Matt 5:6)
• you are loved (John 3:16)
• you are sanctified (1 Thes 5:23)
• you are approved (2 Tim 2:15)
• you are equipped (2 Tim 3:17)
• you are redeemed (Eph 1:7)
• you are holy (1 Peter 1:16)
• you are comforted (John 14:26)
• you are wonderful (Psalm 139:14)
• you are renewed (Col 3:10)
• you are protected (Psalm 3:3)
• you are saved (Eph 2:8)
• you are victorious (Romans 8:37)
• you are set free (John 8:36)
• you are equipped (2 Tim 3:17)
• you are adopted (Rom 8:15)
• you are forgiven (1 John 1:9)
• you are justified (Rom 5:1)
• you are set apart (Rom 12:2)
• you are seen (Psalm 33:18)
• you are safe (2 Tim 4:18)
• you are not alone (Deut 31:6)
• you are a citizen (Phil 3:20)
• you are without fear (2 Tim 1:7)
• you are healed (Isaiah 53:5)
• you are heard (1 John 5:14)
• you are delivered (Psalm 34:4)