Do Not Withhold Good - Carrie Roark

Are you good to yourself? I know you are good to your spouse. You iron his shirts for the business trip even though you have the flu. I know you are good to your kids. You take them and their friends to the park even though you have chores to do around the house. I know you are good to your parents. You stop by for coffee at least once a week and help them with their technology questions. And you are good to your co-workers. You make them all candy for Christmas even though you have your kid’s holiday program to go to. You are even good to strangers. You give money to the church and deliver meals at Thanksgiving to needy families. It comes naturally to you to give goodness to others, and that’s great because it’s biblical to do that. Proverbs 3:27 says, “Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act.”

Being good to others is...well...good. It brings pleasure to the heart of God when we are good to each other. But I ask you, do you withhold good from yourself? Think about it. Are you good to yourself with your self-talk? Do you eat food that is good for your body and get exercise regularly? Do you get plenty of rest? Do you create space for you to feed your spirit and nurture life-giving relationships? And how about this? Do you offer yourself grace and forgiveness?

You are already good at being good; now be good to yourself as well. A term I use for this is “self-care”. It is a discipline that we tend to neglect. So as you go through your day spreading goodness to those around you, offer some to yourself along the way. After all, you cannot give from an empty tank. I'd love to share with you my guide to self-care that is perfect for busy women. Check it out at the link below and get the free pdf to learn ways to be good to yourself. 

https://www.roarkcc.com/self-care-for-busy-women 

Happy New Year!

Carrie Roark