One of Aesop's best-known fables is the story of the goose that laid golden eggs. A man and his wife owned a special goose that laid golden eggs. They became impatient one day and decided they didn't want to wait any longer for the goose to lay the eggs. So, they decided to cut the goose open, and get all the eggs at once. However, when they opened the goose, they found that the goose was just like all other geese - and there were no eggs stored inside.

This story has been told to point to a number of related morals. In its early telling, it was often accompanied by, "Greed loses all by striving all to gain." Another applied moral is, "Much wants more and loses all." However we dissect the story we will find that, "Short-sighted action destroys the profitability of an asset."

Did you know that your greatest asset is yourself? You are the goose. You miraculously are alive, and you produce many "eggs" of value. People love us for our "eggs," and they want us to continue producing as many as possible. But inside, many times, we may feel like we "need" to produce more. So, we strive and push ourselves beyond our own measures of grace from God. We begin to prize our own "eggs" more than the goose (ourselves). Such living takes a toll on us. It wears us out physically, emotionally and spiritually. We might not be cutting ourselves open in order to get everything out, but we may well be wearing ourselves out in order to produce more "gold" than we really can sustain.

We have been commanded to "Love our neighbors as we love ourselves." (Matthew 22:39) And, we have been called to "Do to others what you would have them do to us." (Matthew 7:12) Both commands presuppose that you love God and want to live according to His truth, and that you love and
appreciate yourself. This kind of self-love is not selfish, it is looking to love and care for others. It is a love, however, that receives yourself in light of God's love for you. You are God's beloved; He designed, created and loves you. And, God has given you yourself as the main resource that you will manage in this life. You are the "goose," and God has destined you to healthily produce many "golden eggs" for a long time. (Ephesians 2:10)

Are you taking care of yourself? Are you serving yourself, loving yourself, praying for yourself, teaching yourself, spending time with yourself and resting in a way that honestly reflects how God loves you? Does your treatment of yourself match up to your treatment of others? Or do you always put yourself at the end of the line - allowing your body, mind, soul and spirit to become worn and frayed - in the name Christ? God loves the "golden eggs" of your work, service and fruitfulness, but He loves you much more than that! ... Do you?

Taking Care of Myself in God's Love,
Pastor Tom
tgriffith@rolcboston.org