Article March 26, 2018 Issue

Love—is it natural to us?

Susan Oakes

Is love natural to us or not? And if it is, where does it come from? Is it of our own making? Or does it originate in ancestry, upbringing, education, religious teaching, or experience? What about the times we feel anything but love? Is that our nature?

Once when I was longing to help someone and was reaching out to God to know how, the message came strongly that God loves me. At first I thought, “No, God—You didn’t hear what I was asking. I am asking how to help someone else.” As I listened further, the same message persisted. After resisting for a bit, I stopped and permitted the full-on embrace of God to touch me deeply. I felt loved by God in a way I had not really felt before. It was a simple and profound experience.

Then it dawned on me: Oh, God loves us all this way. God loves my friend this way. That was my answer. Practical ways to show love came as well. But this profound sense of caring was so much more than doing nice things for someone. It became a confidence that I, along with everyone else, am always deeply loved and cared for by God. This is the essence of divine reality. God causes His infinitely loving nature to be reflected in His creation, man—and we see, feel, and express His love in our thoughts and acts.

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