Dearest Heavenly Father,

     As You see, as You hear and as You act, all come from a place of love.  In that way You have given us Your love.  For God is love.

     You have asked us to love as You love.  Each of us grows where each is planted.  Do we have flowing water on which to grow?  Do we have space to stretch our roots out and feel the marvel of life?  

      We cannot give what we don’t have.  We can only give a person bread, if we have bread.  So it is with love.  How can we give it if we don’t have it?  You said, “Love our neighbor as we love ourselves.”  Perhaps some of us grew up without the foundation of love in ourselves.  This emptiness turned into a life of despair.  We may well become self-loathing, critical, demeaning, angry and so on and so on. 

       This is the agony of humankind.  We can only give what we have.  As we see ourselves, so we will see others.  If we have hate in our hearts, that is what we will give to others. How, Dear Father, can we heal our ruptured hearts and instill love?  How can we end a life-time of self-hatred? 

       First let us put our faith, trust and hope in Your words: “All things are possible by the God who strengthens me.”  With God as our guide, we must awaken to the truth of our lives.  Plunge below the surface of our minds.  Face the dismal, dispirited thoughts that have controlled our behavior and life.  Awareness and admission will be the beginning.

      We will heal.  We have broken the shackles of self-hatred.  We will know and feel the loving forgiveness of God.  Meanness will become goodness.  Demeaning will be uplifting.  Criticism will become praise.  Self-hatred will become self-loving.  

We will now “love others as we love ourselves.”

      Rejoice in the Lord always…again I say rejoice