Forever Love

His steadfast love endures forever! Psalms 118:1

Every day, I begin my prayer time by reminding myself of this one enduring reality: God loves me. No matter what I’ve done, I cannot increase or decrease his love. He sent Jesus Christ to die for my forgiveness and to restore me to a right relationship to himself and nothing can take that away. This is the most important thing about me and it is where I must find my ultimate purpose and meaning.

I begin this way because I need to be continually reminded of this unchanging fact. In my attempt to be honest in my prayer and meditation, I tend to begin with all of the things I did wrong yesterday. Any addict with a shred of honesty has some guilt and shame, so daily, I make myself start with God’s love, grace and forgiveness. I may fail, but that does not change his love.

I also do this because I need to continually remind myself where I find true joy, affirmation and purpose. I wish I only needed to learn this lesson once, but God’s enduring love is something towards which I must continually redirect my mind. When I fail to remember where I find my true meaning – which I do a hundred times a day – by default, I turn towards unstable, inadequate sources for my affirmation.

In my wandering, I attempt to find satisfaction in my appetite for food, money, toys, popularity or success. I’m always going to fill myself with something, so daily, I must choose to fill myself with God and his love. When I fail to do so, I naturally turn towards the desires of my own flesh which become inherently destructive, as they are utterly incapable of filling the appetite which only God can satisfy.

Finding my center in God’s love is a conscious choice I must continually make. So, daily – many times a day – I must bring myself back to this one immutable fact. God loves me no matter what. I must accept that this will always be true and that this is enough.