The Bible tells us to love God with all our hearts. How do we know we love God?
I have often asked myself, do I really love God, and if so, do I love Him enough? I think that if we don't love God already, we can at least learn to.
In the Bible, John says, "We love him, because he first loved us" (I John 4: 19). This means to me that it is God Himself who has given us the spiritual capacity to love Him with the love that He places in each person's heart.
Mary Baker Eddy adds to this: "'God is Love.' More than this we cannot ask, higher we cannot look, farther we cannot go" (Science and Health, p. 6). When I consider the immense goodness of God as divine Love, my heart naturally becomes filled with gratitude and love for Him.
To be conscious that life is spiritual and not material is one way to see yourself as already living in divine Love. Mrs. Eddy says that truly loving God includes "even the surrender of all merely material sensation, affection, and worship" (ibid., p. 9). To live in conscious accord with God is to love God.
Hollywood, California
The goodness I feel in my heart tells me I'm knowing God, or divine Love. People tend to model themselves after their ideals. Fascination with fearsome things, for instance, makes me feel and act frightened. Conversely, keeping my attention on good tends to make goodness govern my thoughts and actions.
One of my favorite statements in Science and Health is, "Hold thought steadfastly to the enduring, the good, and the true, and you will bring these into your experience proportionably to their occupancy of your thoughts" (p. 261). Experiencing love, then, is related to how closely one focuses on what is spiritually enduring, good, and true. You could think of it as acquiring a taste for goodness, as well as a distaste for its opposite.
It's helpful to cultivate spirituality by focusing on and praying to see more things that are loving and good. One way can be through studying the Bible and Science and Health. To me, the Bible sums up the answer to your question like this: "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord" (II Cor. 3:18, NKJV).
Boston, Massashusetts
The Bible says, "God is love" (I John 4:8). So it makes sense that when someone loves God, he or she desires to be loving toward others. Using compassion and wisdom in communicating with others shows a deep love for God, or Soul, and His children. The right word can often bring hope and comfort to someone at just the right time.
One time I had a falling-out with a friend. The hurt and confusion were so great that I tried to ignore the situation instead of dealing with it. Then painful little lumps began to appear up and down both my arms. I was afraid, but then realized that this condition was the outcome of my hurt feelings about my friend, and of not wanting to address the problem. So I prayed. And when I considered all the genuine good that had resulted from this friendship, I was able to forgive my friend. The lumps soon disappeared. I saw how forgiveness — loving good and therefore loving God — determines one's spiritual progress and well-being.
Experiencing the magnificence of music, a glorious sunset, or peacocks on parade — these all strike a love-filled awe within me that has made me recognize my love for God more. The poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote, "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways." Aren't the ways of loving God endless?
Wellesley, Massachusetts
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