Developing a Healthy Self

Being rooted in Christ is the only way to create a healthy self. Our worth is found in Him and, as His child, our value and worth are established and confirmed. Growing a healthy self is how we are able to connect and attach to one another. Jesus said, “love others as well as you love yourself” (Mark 12:31). The truth is, you will only allow the amount of love in that you have for yourself. I am not talking about a narcissistic, destructive self-love, I am talking about loving yourself so you have the ability to love others and receive the love they have for you.

Life is to be lived by actively responding to God’s invitation to live our own story. We are not designed to passively stand on the outside of ourselves looking in, hoping and waiting for things to change. God wants us to take responsibility for the life He gives us and, with Him, become the healthy person He designed us to be. Becoming a healthy self is when you start living from the inside out. You own your own emotions, behaviors, and attitudes. And you take personal responsibility, realizing that you truly only have control over yourself. The more of a solid self you grow, the less dependent you are for the approval and acceptance of others. The less solid self, will adjust what he/she thinks, says, and does in the attempt to please others.

Practice doesn’t make perfect, but good news, perfect is not our goal! Perfectionism will never bring happiness—it’s a deception that only brings dissatisfaction—plus, the bondage of perfectionism doesn’t allow us to humbly admit that we are wonderfully imperfect and have a lot to learn about love and life. Be willing to put in the hard work to grow a more beautiful you. A “God-authored self” is a continual growth process. None of us is ever finished. So make sure you are giving yourself permission to be on this journey. Don’t beat yourself by thinking, “I am such a mess. Where do I even start?” We all have to start somewhere and, thankfully, we aren’t alone.

Thought Bomb: Are you passionately committed to growing a healthy-self?