Take care of yourself by taking care of others

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Take care of yourself”

Our Bible verse: “Isn’t this the fast I choose: To break the chains of wickedness, to untie the ropes of the yoke, to set the oppressed free, and to tear off every yoke?” Isaiah 58:6 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Take care of yourself by taking care of others”

In Isaiah 58:6-11 God gives us a prescription for making ourselves feel better. Here it is: “Take your eyes off of yourself and focus instead on taking care of other people.” It seems counterintuitive. When you’re feeling rotten your thoughts are on yourself not on others, and it is natural to believe we have to take care of ourselves first (sometimes that is the case and we will address that in the next devotional). But many times, the answer is to take your eyes off yourself and your own problems and focus instead on doing something for someone else. That’s the lesson of this passage.

God goes on in verse 7, “Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your house, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to ignore your own flesh and blood?”

And how will the Lord bless you in return? Verses 8-10 tell us: “Then your light will appear like the dawn, and your recovery will come quickly. Your righteousness will go before you, and the Lord’s glory will be your rear guard. At that time, when you call, the Lord will answer; when you cry out, he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you get rid of the yoke among you, the finger-pointing and malicious speaking, and if you offer yourself to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted one, then your light will shine in the darkness, and your night will be like noonday.”

And here is the conclusion of the matter in verse 11: “The Lord will always lead you, satisfy you in a parched land, and strengthen your bones. You will be like a well-watered garden and like a spring whose water never runs dry.”

It’s funny how this works. Bless others and you make yourself feel better. As therapy, psychologists and counselors will often urge a depressed person to get involved in volunteer work because as they are helping someone else, it will take their mind off of their own problems and they will feel better in the process.

It’s a tried-and-true Biblical fact that you also take care of yourself when you take care of others.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00, in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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