In our culture, the term “self-care” brings up images of self-indulgence centered around consumption and experiences like spa days, retail therapy, pedicures and tropical vacations. All of which can be really great and fun things! However, because we are made in the image of God as spiritual beings in a body (embodied souls), consumerist strategies can never fully address our deepest needs. We are complex, so self-care should include more than the accumulation of shiny goods and experiences.

Taking care of ourselves is not the same thing as self-indulgence or preoccupation with ourselves. As social beings designed to live in community with others, our self-care must go beyond the individual. When we take care of ourselves, we act as good stewards of God’s creative design that includes many aspects—our bodies, our relationships, and our work. As we show kindness to our own needs, we will be better able to serve others from a place of wholeness and grace.

This month’s counseling toolkit focuses on the deliberate act of valuing and nurturing ourselves as God created us to be through self-reflection and the lens of 5 important domains of life.