Posted by Ignorance surely isn’t bliss. Ignorance is a person deliberately ignoring knowledge or important facts, which can be a very unfun place to be in! While it probably seems like bliss in the moment, in the long run, ignorance can be damaging.
But how many times do we intentionally ignore what we don’t want to know?
We ignore speed limit signs, a habit that will, eventually, result in a ticket.
We ignore relational red flags only for the relationship to end in heartbreak.
We ignore spiritual promptings leading us to miss out on something amazing.
For the majority of my life, I ignored my emotions and myself in general. My numbness and emotional detachment were what got me through the day. They were my defense mechanisms, protecting me from the outside world. They were what I used to try and keep me safe.
This led to an incredible lack of self-awareness. I was so preoccupied with protecting myself that I didn’t see how anything I said or did affected anyone or anything else. My reactions to the things of life and the people in my life were wrong a lot of the time because my heart was wrong.
First learning to Love Myself
“And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”” Matthew 22:37-40 (ESV)
I struggled to love my neighbor because I hadn’t figured out how to love myself first. Without that foundation to build upon, I was unable to love those around me well. I was ignorant in regards to loving myself and the past year I feel like God has been giving me a crash course in how to do just that.
I’m still a novice in this department, but some of those gaps in knowledge I’ve had for many years are being filled slowly but surely. Though things seemed pretty great when I was ignorant of myself and others, I’m happy those blinders have been lifted off my eyes. I’m thankful that I no longer have to intentionally ignore myself and, by caring for myself, I can better care for others.
Responding to Our Natural Alert Systems
Over the past few months, I’ve been learning how to respond to my body’s natural alert systems. There are certain warning signs that my body sends out that are important for me to pay attention to and I’m so excited because, for the next few posts, those are the very things we’re going to be discussing. Some of these things are obvious and others are uncomfortable, but they’re all worth paying attention to.
Hopefully, we’ll all get a little bit better at paying attention to these warning signs, loving ourselves, and, as a result, we’ll love others even better.
What have you been intentionally ignoring?
Is there a part of you that you need to tap into again after days, weeks, months, or years of neglect?
To go Deeper: Read Just Be, Responding to Our Natural Alert Systems
Work in Progress 
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