“Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:24-26)
Reading this passage this week got me thinking about what it means to deny self, and that led to thinking about the current cultural emphasis on “self care” that I’ve noticed lately.
Here’s the question I’ve been pondering: Can the idea of “self care” coexist with Jesus’ call to “deny ourselves”—or are these two diametrically opposed to one another? And: Is there Biblical support for the idea of “self care” or is it a completely anti-Biblical idea?
I came up with a few answers of my own…but what do you think?
About the photos: We got out and went on a hike near Control Lake, my first since injuring my tailbone. I was moving pretty gingerly, I’ll admit, more paranoid than usual of slipping on ice or mud, and we turned back once the snow on the trail got knee-deep—but it felt really, really good to be out in the wild again, listening to the eagles call and looking for signs of spring.
P.S. If you’re new here and wondering what “Project 52” is all about, you can go here to read more!
Rejoicing Hills 
Most of the time the cultural norm is so opposite of God’s word! Self is such a central topic nowadays and no one seems to be embarrassed to let all around them know that they are focusing on “self”, (myself included)!
But I also love how God knows we are frail and need rest……”he makes me lie down in green pastures, he restores my soul, leads me beside still waters…. its wonderful to know that our Savior asks much of us yet He gives us His tendering care knowing that we need Him!