I meant to post this yesterday but got tied up with Mother's Day.
In honor of May being Mental Health Awareness month, my pastor is doing a series of sermons entitled "It's OK To Not Be OK".
And partly in honor of Mother's Day, yesterday's sermon was about caregivers: "Give The World The Best Of You, Not What's Left Of You", a sermon dedicated to the importance - and yes, holiness - of self-care.
He used the Gospel story of Jesus healing Peter's mother-in-law. How after He healed people in the village, Jesus went off by Himself to be alone. And when His disciples followed Him and told Him they had to go back to the village to continue, Jesus told them no - that it was time for them to move on to continue their ministry. My pastor then used the often quoted "Love your neighbor as yourself" but brought up the important fact that what often gets lost in that passage is the "love yourself" part of it.
He then stood in front of the church and did some juggling. Yes, juggling! He first juggled a basketball, a tennis ball and a marble together, showing how difficult it is to juggle things that are so disproportionate in size, stating at the end of the demonstration: "and look, I've lost my marble!" when he dropped it on the floor. He then juggled 3 tennis balls, to demonstrate how much easier it is when everything in the air is the "in the same proportion".
It was such a refreshing change of pace, especially from a vocation that usually stresses how much more you should be doing for everyone else, putting your own needs on the back burner in the name of service.
I thought some of you might find this comforting and helpful in your own caregiving journey.
Thank you for sharing this, it is important for caregivers to KNOW that they matter and they need to take care of themselves, lest they drop dead before the person they are care giving for.
I believe that is why the world is in the shape that it's in now.
Like already said....you have a wise Pastor indeed. Thanks for sharing.
And spot on! Thank you for sharing.