Self Love (Part One)

Part-one

What is Self-love? This is one word that has been very popular these days. People are now becoming aware of themselves and learning to start loving themselves and realizing that nothing anyone says really matters but what they think of themselves. Why? because they love themselves.

These days, I've really been getting into loving myself and accepting myself for who I am. This is when God decided to teach me something in these moments of finding myself and loving myself.

Self-love is a lie. Calm down stay with me on this I will get to tell you why I said so. We can never fully love ourselves the way we want. When God began teaching me this, I was like 'what is going on? I have just started learning to love myself and not compare myself with others, now you're telling me this'.

God told me, instead of self-love, I should die to self. This is what He wants us to know. Dying to self is the goal God was planning all along. Self has been corrupted and when you begin the journey to self-love, most of the things you think are good for you in the name of "I'm loving myself so, I can do what I want, be who I want because I love myself". If not careful, we might end up hurting ourselves.

The idea of love cannot be gotten anywhere else. Trust me when I say it can never be achieved anywhere else except in God. This is because love is who God is. The bible says: "God is Love"- (1John 4:8). So, which other places can we get love from except in God?

We can get that glimpse of what love is as we are in this world. Why did I say glimpse? because that is what it is and not what the love of the Father is, why? because the idea of love has been influenced and polluted over time that we have all forgotten or have no idea of what love truly is.

It is so sad to know that most people perhaps have come and gone out of this world without getting a taste of true love. And when I say true love, I don't mean what we have known or thought is true love, neither am I talking about how the media has painted it to look like. I am talking about God's own love.

Let's look at what 2Corinthians 13:4-7 (NLT) says about love:

Love is patient

Love is kind

Love is not jealous, boastful, proud or rude

Love does not demand it's own way (in my own terms: a sense of entitlement)

Love keeps no record of being wronged (in my own terms: grudges, malice unforgiveness)

Love does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices when the truth prevails

Love never gives up

Love never loses faith

Love is hopeful

Love endures through any circumstance

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Let us bring all these points from the scripture above to evaluate our 'Self-love'. Can we be truly honest with ourselves and say we are practising self-love using the bible as a reference? Are we always patient even with ourselves? Let us point the lense to us since we are talking about 'Self-love.

How patient have we been with ourselves? If we were patient, most things that stress us out won't be there. Most of us want to rush our process and see results. Because of this, we increase the level of how hard we work, we push for things which can make us very demanding and we can see from above that love does not demand it's own way and all in the name of 'Self-love' we trample on others saying I'm being myself and doing things my own way.

We develop this sense of independence, and most times if not careful, we put things and ourselves above God which makes us boastful, proud, rude and loving ourselves. So, 'I can do what I want because I'm doing me and being me'.

self-confidence

Hold up! I am not saying we should not have confidence in ourselves or believe in ourselves, but how and where do we learn how to do that if not in God. Reading motivational books, listening to motivational songs and talks are very good in boosting our confidence. What I want to tell you is something that can sustain your self-confidence in the long run as anything outside of God that does not teach you, love, confidence and self-esteem will not probably keep you going. God can use these other outlets to teach you so do not rule them out. So why should we learn from God? because he is the creator of this concept called love so if we want to know what love is all about, let us go back to Him so He can guide us into the truth we need to know.

Hey guys, this is part one on this topic. I hope this write up has ignited something in you. Till part two comes out meditate and ask the Father to teach you about love again. I leave you with this and love from the Father as you wait expectantly for part two.