Ellen Degeneres end each show by saying “be kind to one another.” We tell kids to “be nice” to their siblings and peers. But how often are we reminded to be nice to ourselves?
I had a bit of a stressful day the other day. I was not being very nice to myself at all. My hubby calmed me down, thankfully. I am always so thankful for him. He is definitely the only person who can bring me back down when I’m up, and vice versa.
Anyway, I finished out that day with lots and lots of prayer and needing to hear from God. I truly believe that he speaks to us. Sometimes, something in particular sticks out of a message that we’re hearing. Sometimes a song gives you the words you need to hear. Sometimes, something just pops into your head completely out of the blue. I truly believe that all these things are God. All of these situations are God telling you what you need to hear. Now mind you, it’s not always what you want to hear.
The next morning I woke up and immediately what I opened my eyes I heard “be nice to yourself.” I don’t quite know how to describe how I heard it. It wasn’t quite audible but it wasn’t quite completely in my head either. I know it was God.
The thing is, I try to set these lofty goals for myself. To try to do this more or not do that as much. The thing I realized, is that those aren’t very tangible. However, anyone, including small children can understand “be nice.”
Why are we so quick to be kind to others and take care of others, but not to ourselves? I know I am.
Take this opportunity to set little reminders in your head. Make a trigger, of sorts, for yourself; just little check ups to make sure this is happening. This helped me so much and any amount of stress I encountered, I could deal with and work through by making sure that I was being nice to myself. So simple, but so effective and meaningful.
