The Father's Love is Full

More than any other, the love that comes from our Father is full–complete and lacking nothing. It is full in the way that it has its own end, but also in a way that when we receive it...freely, openly, we are filled in such a way that we have reached capacity, yet on some level there somehow seems to be more that we can receive from him. As sons and daughters, we are nourished by the Father's love, we find ourselves in the Father's love, and we are made whole by the Father's love.

The Saints, once converted, were transfixed on the Father. They tasted his love and sought to live their lives to receive more. By opening their hearts to this love, they opened their hearts to eternity and saw everything that they had tried to put in its place before had paled in comparison.

How do we receive love in this way?

Whatever one asks such a question a response would probably be to "open your heart". That seems abstract on some level… so how do we do that? Pray. Still abstract for some people. Perhaps we could start on a smaller scale with saying,” yes”. (That is, by the way, a prayer, but we say yes and mean it.) What are you saying yes to? The question that the Father has been asking, “Will you let me love you?” Saying yes starts simply and allows him to enter our hearts. As the Gentleman that he is, he won't take up too much space too soon, but he will come into our lives. Then yes leads us to other statements: show me, guide me. Little by little, we have opened our hearts and have developed relationship with our Father. Then, we get to see what the saints saw while they were in formation on earth: "God's love is sweet, renewing, and necessary, and I want more.”

How do we know that we are receiving God's love?

Our perspective changes. That which brought us joy before doesn't somehow work in light of this love that we've received from him. The vices that we turned to before seem less important and depending on the nature, almost gross to us. (Although, we can still be tempted from time to time.) This is because we have come to draw pure water and to do such things again would pollute it. This is how we know that God's love is filling because we become fulfilled in a way that only connecting with him can we be fed, satisfied. No human, pet, amount of money, vice or self-help book can do this for us.

Additionally, despite the fact that the Father's love is full and complete, it doesn't cast off love or contact with other human beings. Quite the opposite… God's love is contagious and eager to be shown–that's how we were created–to want to show this love that we've been given. So the fullness of God's love leads us to love others fully and correctly in a way that brings to mind God, who is love, when we are interacting with them.