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Self-Care Tip #205 – Sharing Love with others is friendly to yourself.
For every person you care about and talk to about Jesus, they’re that much more likely to be led to Jesus.
I recently heard something to this effect out of the jolliest, most well-intentioned man. He quoted some of my favorite verses such as “the rocks will cry out” and others to support his understanding that we hold responsibility to share the gospel.
I’m not here to say how Jesus works. However, I have a hard time believing that God would leave your salvation up to the likes of me. I have a hard time believing that God would leave my salvation up the the likes of you. I do however think that it is good self-care and possibly helps us choose God more deliberately, more thoroughly and more decidedly. Sharing the goodness in us, sharing what brings love into our lives, sharing what brings love to others, sharing what brings more connection between us – that has to be good for us.
Question: How has sharing Love helped your narrative, your self-care and your connections in life? Please tell me your story.
Be patient. This might be a long one…..
My husband had an aunt (not a blood relative) who, with her husband, sort of adopted our family and became our kids’ other set of grandparents and my other mother-in-law (whom I adored!). When I had my breakdown, Marie started taking me on cruises – three of them. Lee had died and I thought she needed company. I was terrified, at first, to be away from home, but loved the trips and the time with this very talented, very spiritual lady.
I was still in phychotherapy two days a week and pastoral counseling two other days (and was making weekly visits to my minister over the weekend) and on tons of medication when Marie was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She lived in California (in the house she eventually left to us and where we are at the moment, snow-birding). We lived on the East Coast. When the doctor told her that she had very little time left, she called and asked that I come out here and be with her – ALONE – when as she was dying. I talked with all of the counselors, doctors, ministers, and God, and got on a plane.
We had a week. She was in a nursing home. We talked about dying as being a rebirth and asked that I put her in a robe (that I had bought her and which felt like a receiving blanket) when she died so that she could be cremated in that…her receiving blanket as she went on “the greatest cruise” of her life and finally met her God. We prayed together, sang together, talked together and were just there together for the last five days of her life. She asked me to be sure to be there when she died (I’d never seen anyone die!) and she asked that, when that happened, I hold her hand “to the gates of heaven”.
The last morning of her life, as I changed her into the soft gown that was the only thing in which she felt comfortable, she put her arms around me, told me that she loved me, and told me that she was insisting I go through this with her to prove to myself that I was a capable, strong, spiritual woman. Then she grabbed my hand and said, “I’m going!” and she died.
As she was breathing her last death breaths, I saw the most beautiful field of flowers and the bluest sky I had ever seen. They were separated by a white line. The field got shorter and when all that was left was the line and the sky, she was gone.
I’ve never felt closer to God. I now have an angel and I often smell her perfume on special occasions. My granddaughter looks just like her…and isn’t related by blood. And I know now, from my husband, that all of the cruises were to make me well, and he was receiving multiple checks from her to help with our medical expenses all the time I was sick.
Love? Of God and of an incredible person…and for an incredible person and for God. What more could I have ever asked for!
Thanks for listening. It’s been good to tell someone.
gorgeous sentimental story. i even started smelling things! it’s wonderful to have this to pull out and look at when times get rough. thanks for sharing it w us. keep on.
Sentimental, yes, but I considered it the spiritual high of my life. There have been others since, but dying with Marie was the closest walk with God I will probably ever have, and it made every other such experience that much more spiritually rich and meaningful. It changed who I was forever.
Spiritual. And the best thing is that I don’t need to pull it out. It’s always with me.
Self care is important and in our case mandatory i.e. we are not allowed to cause/inflict harm to our bodies. But that’s all physical (mental too when drugs are involved) … so in our culture we are not to do that.
Anyway, I’ll answer your question with a quote. “If you want to be happy, give happiness to someone else”
luv the quote. thank u. u must feel a little happier now as we all have been blessed by u. keep talking.
p.s. I soon quit the pastor counselor thing and got down to once a week (for the most part) with the psychologist. Aunt Marie knew exactly what she was doing. I’m convince God did, too!!
yes!
Probably a critical part of the ministry of Jesus that gets far too little attention is Jesus as Healer. Of course you or l cannot provide salvation. But health provider , counselor, social work, teaching and the like are all forms of lay ministry. We can illuminate the way to salvation for others by our example. Your particular example is admirable because you “do not apologize” for the presence of God in your life. And you do not deny the Christ. Billy Graham says when we deny the Christ, we re crucify the Christ. This is the lesson of Peter’s denial 3 times. The suggestion to others that there is healing available if one chooses to so avail oneself is our contribution for the salvation of others. We do not deny the Christ. Nor the joy found in His healing embrace. If we can but just slip a little piece of iron in someone’s pocket Jesus’ magnet will do the rest. I am especially confident on this understanding. PS Dr. J-Q, you sure have made me wear out my thinking cap this last several months.
God is the Great Physician.
thank u for saying that Carl. It blew me away as i have a little carl-awe thing going on myself. apparently, u and all these other fine ones bring it out in me. thank u for helping me participate in such value. keep on.
I once read that religion is for those who are afraid of hell, but spirituality is for those who’ve been there. Makes a lot of sense to me.
Happy Sunday, Doc.
hell. i have felt like i’ve been there before. i think we all have but to know it, to b real, to cut the B.S. and go to the real core of things – that takes courage. thanks for this cindy.
Someone will always show you who they are …watch what they do.
Our actions may show someone the way when their ears are closed.
live it, Maxi!
I have a problem with those who share the word but don’t live the word. I think love and goodness are evident in actions whether the person is religious or not. I stopped going to an organized place of wroship due to hypocrisy, and have turned to live a personal relationship with God. I have grown in ways I’ve never before…I am no longer distracted by who is doing what or who said what and now I can live heartfully from the inside out. Of course, there are well meaning people who do live the word they spread, just not everyone. I’m not one for spouting scripture to people, and I do have a few well meaning friends who do but I always feel just a bit belittled when they say them to me because it is as if I am being judged though they claim to not be judgmental. Love Cindys comment!
cindy does pull some good ones out doesn’t she? and so do u, word-smith that u r. it sounds like u’ve been really hurt. thank u for sharing this tender history w us.
by having shared love on the reciveing end this has helped me loads and loads it has got me threw some of my tuffest times and makes me see that life is worth living after all quick note on me got a reply form my M.P and she has gave me more info for help and i have to go and see my doctor things are not as bad as they seemed at the time witch i find weird my theropist is going to try and get me out my bubble but also says i need another worker becuase he does not think i will cope in group situwations otherwise i got 48% in my uni assignment i know its not to good but its a pass so i am still on for my HONS degree things abroad meanwhile there has been a set back but still on track my best friend as well says its really hard for goverment in genaral to understand that pull your socks up treatment form years ago doesnt work in all cases and they need to take a diffrent approach insted of backing me into a corner they could try finding your barriers and work on them i have missed the last few weeks blogging etc becuase i was kinda lost also there is most likely going to be a tribuneral on my case but citezens advice are going to support me and told me not to wory my best mate doesnt understand me at the moment and i cant seem to get threw to him he thinks i am lazy and do not want a job but i do but not with people i am hopefully going to get the chance to see a Clinical psychologists si kinda know what work is going to work for me i love the idear of this i dont really know what kinda work will work for me a lot of self care comes down to beeting you own barriers and obstacales and that is what i am up to
u might b one that gets energy from being alone rather than w people too? that might b playing into your reaction. thanks for giving us this update kev. u r a “blumer.” 🙂