Feeling lonely, exhausted, or hopeless? Want to get into self-care but don’t know where to start? The Bible says there are simple things we can do that will give us physical and spiritual energy for everything else. Here are 8 Bible verses about self-care.
Whenever we hear the term “self-care” it can seem like it’s just a mundane thing. While there is the idea of being self-centered and overly preoccupied with ourselves or our appearance, self-care at its core is not necessarily self-absorbed.
We are created by God and in His image. The scriptures tell us that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and that we must renew our minds.
None of these scriptures explicitly say “self-care”, but in a very simple way, when we honor the body God has given us and renew our minds through His word, we are taking care of ourselves and glorifying God.
God cares for our well-being, and that includes not only our minds and souls, but also our bodies, and that they are cared for.
But it’s important to remember that ultimately our eyes are on Christ, and we can honor Him by taking care of ourselves in ways that refresh our souls, renew our minds, and care for our physical well-being.
8 Bible verses about self care
1. Mark 1:35
“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, went out of the house and went to a solitary place where he prayed.”
Although Jesus spent a lot of time with people, He was often with His disciples, teaching in the temple, healing, or interacting with different people. But Jesus took time to spend with the Father.
It was His time with the Father where He found His source of strength and refreshment. The same way, Our relationship with God is the foundation of our self-care. The way Jesus did it was by prioritizing his time with God through prayer.
We know from the scriptures that Jesus’ days were often busy preaching the gospel of the Kingdom of God and interacting with people. We often read that He got up early in the morning before He did anything else.
We may not instinctively think of time with God as self-care, but it is on a deeper level, soul-care, and refreshes, fills, and centers us for the day ahead. If Jesus prioritized time with God in prayer, how much do we need it?
2. Jeremiah 17:7-8
But blessed is he who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water, which puts out its roots by the stream. He is not afraid when fever comes. its leaves are always green. It has no trouble in a year of drought and never bears fruit.’
When we forget to turn to God in faith, we feel like we’re barely hanging on by a thread. The busyness and rigors of life can wear us down, and we can feel tired and exhausted.
Trusting in ourselves and trying to live life without abiding in Christ is like a branch detached from the vine hoping to grow. Instead, the branch dries up.
But scripture tells us that those who live in God are like a tree planted by the water.
This tree does not fear when the scorching heat comes because it is rooted in the source of life. No matter what season we go through, we can grow in Christ.
3. Romans 12:1-2
Therefore, I exhort you, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercy of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true and proper worship.
Do not be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and confirm what God’s will is, his good, pleasing, and perfect will.”
Another way we can take care of ourselves is by renewing our minds. Old thought patterns and worldly mindsets are a heavy burden to bear.
The world is always chasing different things to satisfy them, be it money, relationships, achievements, popularity and many more.
We all are, and we’ve all been subject to it. But every person has a God-like hole in their heart, and apart from Christ, we will always be chasing after something that will fulfill us that was never meant to be.
Through Christ, our old patterns of thinking and behavior are renewed, and the old man dies, making way for the new creature in Christ.
This does not mean that we do not struggle against sin, rather, sin is no longer our master and we now have the Holy Spirit within us to help us escape from sin.
We can grow in the renewing of our minds by staying in God’s word and asking God to let His word change us for our good and His glory.
4. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17
“Know ye not that ye yourselves are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. for the temple of God is holy, and you are that temple together.’
Sometimes it’s hard to understand, but God has chosen us to be His temple.
When we believe in Christ, He gives us His Holy Spirit and He lives within us. In other words, Christ lives in us.
It is not only this truth, but also the fact that God created us and gave us our bodies that we should take care of it and respect it.
We can take care of our bodies in different ways. Some ways are getting enough sleep, eating foods that nourish your body, taking care of your health through exercise, and not doing things that are bad for your body.
5. Matthew 15:32
“Jesus called his disciples and said, “I pity these people. they have been with me for three days and have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry, otherwise they might collapse on the way.”
We see Jesus’ compassion for people throughout His time on earth. He not only cared for the spiritual condition of others, but also cared for their physical needs.
Sometimes it can seem strange to think about what you need physically, whether it’s rest, chiropractic care, a nutritious meal, or a break from work.
There are ways we can take care of ourselves that allow us to feel regenerated and rest in God’s compassion for us, who knows what we need.
6. 1 Peter 3:4
“Rather, it must be your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great value in the sight of God.”
When it comes to self-care, we often look both ways. Sometimes it’s easy to focus on one side and ignore the other side.
It’s good for us to take care of ourselves externally, and there are various ways we can do this without becoming too fixated on our appearance.
But God’s word reminds us that while it is not a bad thing to take care of ourselves on the outside, there is an inner beauty that is much more precious to God.
This is the beauty of a heart and a spirit that is meek and quiet before God. The world can easily judge a person by their outward appearance, but God looks at the heart and that is what is most important to Him.
7. Matthew 11:28-30
“Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest; Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.’
Life’s stresses can weigh heavily on your shoulders. Requirements that must be met, duties that must be fulfilled, and a long list of things to do.
We live in a busy society that seems to always be on the go. And let people go from one weary day to the next just trying to stay afloat.
When you feel like you are carrying a heavy burden, Jesus welcomes you to come to Him and find the rest your soul needs. We can take care of ourselves by letting Him take care of us.
8. 1 Kings 19:1-8
“Now Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword.
So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say:
Elijah was afraid[a] and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba of Judah, he left his servant there, and he went a day’s journey into the wilderness.
He came to a broom bush, sat under it and prayed that he would die. “I am enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life. I am no better than my ancestors.” Then he lay down under a bush and fell asleep.
Immediately an angel touched him and said: “Get up and eat.” He looked around, and near his head was bread baked on hot coals and a jug of water. He ate and drank, then lay down again.
The angel of the Lord returned a second time, touched him and said:
So he got up, ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.
Sometimes it is easy to fall into despair like Elijah. He was alone and felt hopeless.
However, God had a plan for him, and in the midst of it all, He sent an angel to encourage Elijah and told him to eat and drink for the journey ahead.
Elijah ate and drank, and we are told that he was strengthened by that food and continued to travel forty days and nights to where God had directed him.
We see God accept Elijah’s physical needs and how He does so eating and drinking gave him energy to get up and not give up.
In the same way, we may feel discouraged some days and want to crawl into a hole. Sometimes these are the simple things we need to do that will give us the energy to do everything else.
Want to learn more about what God thinks about our physical bodies? See below.
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