“Be still and know that I am God.“~ Pslam 46:10a
I sat with a priest friend complaining about how I was trying to follow all the rules of the faith, but I still felt empty. I checked all the appropriate spiritual boxes, so why did I not feel the love of God?
Let God Love You
Fr. Joe, with the sweetest voice, said, “Allison, when are you going to allow God to love you?” Well, there’s something I hadn’t considered. Connecting with God as Father was a challenge; having struggled with my relationship with my earthly father, I honestly didn’t know how to let God love me because I wasn’t entirely sure how that felt.
Fr. Joe instructed me to spend time in quiet with God. Don’t ask for anything, don’t try to feel anything; merely sit and listen—pray for the Holy Spirit to open your heart to receive God’s love.
Grow in Love
Back home, I stared out the window at the clouds and the heavens, thinking that might help. It didn’t. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and began to recall cuddling with my dad and watching NASCAR races on Sunday afternoons. I remembered the contentment, security, and joy of those shared moments. Suddenly, one of my boys yelled for me. Although I wanted to respond, “Hey, don’t you see I’m trying to have a moment with God—don’t bug me,” It didn’t seem the proper reaction of someone working to grow to understand God’s love.
After caring for my child’s needs, I returned to my cozy spot and, within seconds, once again felt peace, safety, and connectedness. But wait, was this being loved by God, the Father Almighty? Yes, to me, it was! He is always there, waiting, and available for simple moments together. I didn’t have to do anything special, merely be present, and I’d see He was with me in every moment.
Do you struggle to experience the love of God in your own life? Have you sought a connection with the God of the Universe, not in serving or study; but in quiet contemplation? Of course, God is in all things and in every one of our activities; but He speaks the loudest when we are still and offer Him our ear (and the space to speak). How will you this week sneak away for a moment of solitude with the Lord?
Prayer
Heavenly Father, you are love. I know in my intellect that you love me, but my heart struggles to allow you in. Heal the wounds holding me back from letting you in. If only for a moment, please help me lower the barriers to experiencing your love.
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I don’t struggle with knowing he loves me, I struggle with keeping the craziness of the world out so I can feel that love.
Well said, Vicki!!! Knowing and Experiencing can be two completely different things!
I know God loves me, but I have a terrible time slowing my brain down enough to feel it.
I too know that God loves me. I have a difficult time listening. I’m not good with quiet. I have been doing it a little more in the last few years and I can actually handle a small amount of quiet now. I don’t always hear God or feel God. I just know that I believe he is there. I see His presence in my life’s situations. I evidence of Him in my life. I just don’t really feel Him. I just remind myself, that it’s okay to not feel His love like others do, because I still believe.
I distinctly remember the first time I realized God loved me. I had been told over and over and over, until one night right after Mass and I heard “why are you telling Me who I can and cannot love? I love you and there is nothing you can do about it!”
WOW…That’s an arrow to the heart, getting you right at the core of the issue, moment, huh lol!
I am working on trusting God and Jesus. I know I have trust barriers, I beg God to take them away so I can be closer to Him. It is my angst and sorrow. The priest said surrender to God. I am a work in progress. Pray for me please.
💙
I know God loves me. I have problems creating quiet space without distractions where I can dedicate the proper time he deserves.
the struggle, as they say, is real! Even giving the advice AND knowing with my whole heart the necessity for it, coupled with the multiplication of time God makes when we make time for Him. I STILL FAIL to create the space! Let’s keep praying for each other <3
This has become a habit for me. I put myself in God’s presence before I fall asleep. Since I rarely sleep all night, that’s where I go again when I wake up. Some nights are better than others. Some nights my distracted brain takes over for too long, but it’s always so peaceful resting in the arms of Abba Father.
That is a beautiful habit!!!
I know that God loves me. I have felt His presence in the past. I am so surrounded by noise that I really struggle to find quiet to connect. Work has kept me from adoration recently. In adoration, I always feel His peace.
WE NEED more 24 hour Adoration Chapels #JustSayin
I know that God loves me. Sometimes I feel like I am so busy doing things and working to show God’s love to others that I forget to let myself feel His love. Like your story of sitting with Him in silence and comfort, I need to create a space where I seek His comforting love and receive it–no matter how briefly!
Distraction, I am convinced, is evil’s greatest tactic to keep us from growing closer to Jesus!
Beautiful blogpost. We can love God & bring joy to His Heart by allowing Him to love us. This can be easier said than done. I can be most aware of and receptive to His love after receiving Him in the Eucharist at Mass and during Eucharistic Adoration.
Thank you Anne Marie … Amen, JESUS is truly present in the Eucharist, and we can’t find a better place to experience His Love. WELL said!
Wow! I love this! Are you allowing God to love you? I need to work on just sitting in His presence and letting Him love me. No talking, pleading, reading, or music. Just resting in His love, peace, and presence. Thank you for this.
You will be truly amazed at the graces that will flow from RESTING in His LOVE <3