Do you know what it is to have a revelation about yourself on a stage in front of nearly 12,000 people? That’s what happened to me yesterday in The Love School Event at Wembley Arena.
The class was going very well. Renato, as always, was doing great as a teacher.
It was precisely at that time that someone brought in a stool for me to sit on. I remained standing for 1 hour and 15 minutes, as the stool they had prepared for me was on the other side of the stage (the high heels were killing my feet). But it eventually came, and at a good time… I really needed to sit down and digest what had just been revealed to me. We were saying that a person’s relationship with their partner is actually their third relationship; if they don’t invest in their first two relationships, the third one will pay a high price and get worn out at the end of the day. The Lord Jesus Himself summarized all the commandments when He said:
“You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.†This is the first great commandment. And the second is like it: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.†(Matthew 22:37-39)
1. First relationship: YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD2. Second relationship: YOU SHALL LOVE YOURSELF
3. Third relationship: YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR
We had already talked about the subject before the class and I knew exactly what we were going to talk about, but suddenly, it was no longer the two of us talking; I could hear the Holy Spirit Himself speaking to me…
I remembered the time when we had serious problems in our marriage; I was very insecure and begged for Renato’s attention. I would do everything for him; I tried to be the best wife in the world, I took very good care of the house, and he lacked nothing. He had absolutely no reason to complain about me—except that I desperately needed attention.
I LOVED MY HUSBAND MORE THAN I LOVED MYSELF
The order was all wrong! For you to love your neighbor, you have to love yourself first and then love him or her as yourself!
It was then that I understood why so many women fail to get rid of relationships that are harmful to them; so many mothers stop living because of children who don’t even care about them; so many young girls let themselves be used as objects just to feel loved, even if it’s for one night only… They all have one thing in common: They love themsleves less.
When we love someone more than we love ourselves, we don’t do what only we can do for ourselves; we don’t look after, love, preserve or appreciate ourselves. This is exactly what I was doing about 10 years ago… and because I did not love or value myself, I wanted my husband to do it for me. No matter how much he tried, it was never enough and it could never be!
Nobody else can do the things that only I can do for myself.
This is why the Lord Jesus summarized the entire Bible in the verse above; in another verse, He said:
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 16:26)
How many people do everything for everyone but neglect themselves, including people who do the Work of God! They serve everyone, but when it is time for them to take care of themselves, they can’t; they have no motivation, no time… but what profit is it if we love our neighbor without loving ourselves first? Do you know what the results are?- Sadness
- Rejection
- Ungratefulness
- Misinterpretation
- Abuse of goodwill
- Disrespect
And so on…
But when you love yourself first, you do not need approval from anyone to do for your neighbor what you already do for yourself! You approve of yourself! Isn’t it cool??
If you’re happy about yourself, imagine when you marry someone who is also happy about himself/herself? Both will be completely happy because neither of the two will put pressure on the other to meet their needs.
Dear friends, let’s love ourselves first and then love others. And don’t forget: the only person we can love more than ourselves is the Lord Jesus, for He will never let us down!
God Himself revealed it to me. How great is that? He is wonderful, isn’t He?! If you do not have a relationship with Him yet, then consider investing in it first—before your marriage, before your boyfriend, before your career, before everything else in this world. It was only when He taught me to love myself that all the areas of my life began to develop.
Great advice there.........SMILE...RETURN TO YOUR FIRST LOVE....GOD !SMILE
