Today's culture presents love (especially the couple relationship) in a lot of screwed up ways. One hour at the gym glancing at those ridiculous music videos they play convinces me of that. But one thing in particular is completely, 180 degrees backwards. That would be the premise that "you can't love anyone else until you love yourself".
The truth is, loving yourself is a result of loving others...as long as that love is expressed or practiced or experienced within those guidelines from good 'ol 1 Corinthians 13. When you treat others with patience, kindness and respect, avoiding jealousy, rudeness, selfishness and anger, you are loving them. And we are called to do just that, whether we happen to be feeling love for ourselves or not.
When I was growing up, we spent a lot of holidays at my aunt's home. On the wall in her living room was a plaque that read:
A song is not a song until you sing it.
A bell is not a bell until you ring it.
Love was not put in our hearts to stay.
For love is not love until you give it away.
Give it a try. Next time you are feeling not-so-great about yourself, reach out to someone and treat them in a loving way. Then see how the way you feel about yourself changes. Even if they don't respond in kind, your outlook will change because you have acted in love.
I think I'll take my own advice on this today.
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