Good morning! Happy Saturday from right in the middle of the craziness for me. I just got home from a few days in St. Louis for a work conference, and Andrew and I are leaving Monday afternoon to go back to St. Louis to catch a plane to San Antonio Tuesday morning for a board meeting and conference planning. I love San Antonio, so when things worked out that we could stay a couple of extra days, I was game.
I will get back, though, and have four days left before I have my major staff training of the year. There is a lot going on with LIHEAP right now too, so that is a lot to plan for. Then, to keep life interesting, four days after the staff training, I will have oral surgery and have a bone graft on my front lower teeth. September is going to be something. So, I am trying to fit making a quick trip to Hob Nob, Laundry, repacking, and spending time at the office getting ready for my training all into today.
And maybe that makes this the perfect week to talk about the last part of our self-care series: caring for our soul. My first thing I wanted to get done was this Bible Study, because I needed this at least as bad as any of you!
We have talked about taking care of ourselves physically, mentally, and emotionally, but none of those can replace caring for the part of us that was created for a relationship with God. We can eat right, exercise, get enough sleep, set boundaries, take vacations, go to counseling, spend time doing things we enjoy—and all of those things can be good and necessary. But we cannot care for our soul without spending time with the One who created it.
Make Time for God Every Day
I believe we need to get into God's Word every single day. That doesn't mean every morning has to be an hour-long Bible study with three commentaries, a journal, highlighters, and the perfect cup of coffee. Some seasons of life allow for that. Some don't. Sometimes it may be a five-minute devotional before you run out the door. Other days you may have time for what I like to call a "power hour" with God. The amount of time may change, but the priority shouldn't.
Jesus said in Matthew 4:4, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
Think about that in terms of self-care. We wouldn't expect our bodies to thrive if we only fed them once a week. Why do we sometimes expect our souls to?
Psalm 119:105 tells us, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” Joshua 1:8 tells us to keep God's Word on our lips and meditate on it day and night. Scripture isn't just something we read so we can check “Bible time” off our list. It is one of the primary ways we learn who God is, what He wants for us, and how He wants us to live.
And we need prayer right alongside it. Prayer isn't just giving God our list of things we need fixed. It is spending time with Him. It is talking, listening, thanking, confessing, asking, and sometimes simply sitting in His presence. When September—or whatever your version of my September is—starts looking overwhelming, that is not the time to decide you are too busy for God. That is when you need that time with Him the most.
You Need Christian People in Your Life
Caring for your soul also means being intentional about the people you surround yourself with. Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” I love that picture because sharpening isn't always comfortable. Sometimes a Christian friend encourages us. Sometimes they pray with us. Sometimes they remind us of God's promises when we have forgotten them. And sometimes they love us enough to tell us something we don't particularly want to hear. We need people like that.
That doesn't mean every friend we have must be a Christian. How could we share the Gospel if we never built relationships with people who don't know Jesus? But I do believe we need close Christian friends who understand what ultimately matters to us—friends who know that this world isn't the finish line.
Philippians 3:20 reminds us that “our citizenship is in heaven.” Jesus gave us our mission in Matthew 28:19–20 when He told His followers to go and make disciples. Christian friends help us keep that perspective when the world around us is telling us that success, money, appearance, possessions, popularity, or comfort are what matter most. We need friends who can celebrate earthly blessings with us while also reminding us that our greatest reward isn't here.
Church Is Part of Caring for Your Soul
That is also one reason I believe being part of a church is so important. Church isn't simply somewhere we go on Sunday morning because Christians are supposed to. Hebrews 10:24–25 tells believers to consider how we can spur one another on toward love and good deeds, “not giving up meeting together,” but encouraging one another.
There is something we receive from worshipping, learning, serving, praying, laughing, crying, and simply doing life with other believers that we cannot reproduce by ourselves. Can you read your Bible at home? Absolutely. Can you watch a sermon online? Of course. Can those things feed your soul? Yes. But Christianity was never designed to be lived completely alone.
We need people to pray for us when we're struggling. We need people who notice when we aren't there. We need people whose faith challenges ours. We need opportunities to serve someone besides ourselves. And other Christians need those things from us, too. That last part is important. Fellowship isn't only about what I get from church. Sometimes caring for my own soul means using what God has put in me to pour into somebody else's.
I would be remiss to not remind everyone if you are local to me. We would love to have you at our church, Hidalgo Independent Christian, 227 W Harrison in Hidalgo. Sunday School for all ages at 9, Worship Service starts at 10.
Soul Care Isn't Another Item on the To-Do List
Especially in a month like the one I'm heading into, it would be very easy for my time with God to become one more thing on an already ridiculous to-do list. Read Bible. Check. Pray. Check. Church. Check. But that's not the point. The point is relationship.
God doesn't want an appointment on my calendar so I can say I completed my Christian duties for the day. He wants me. And I desperately need Him.
So maybe caring for your soul this week doesn't require some huge spiritual overhaul. Maybe it starts with five minutes. Open your Bible before you open Facebook. Pray in the car instead of spending the whole drive worrying about what is waiting for you when you get there. Text the Christian friend who always seems to point you back toward Jesus. Go to church tomorrow—even if your week has been exhausting and staying home sounds easier. And when life gets crazy, don't let time with God be the first thing you cut from the schedule.
We take care of our bodies because God gave them to us. We take care of our minds and emotions because they affect how we live and love others. But we take care of our souls because we were created for something bigger than this life.
The ultimate goal of self-care isn't to make ourselves comfortable enough to coast through life. It is to keep ourselves spiritually, physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy enough to live the life God has called us to live, love the people He has put in front of us, share the Gospel, and someday hear the words every follower of Jesus longs to hear: “Well done, good and faithful servant.” — Matthew 25:23
Take care of yourself this week—all of yourself. And don't forget the part of you that lasts forever. ❤️
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