Let Your God Love You (by Edwina Gateley)

Be silent.
Be still.
Alone.
Empty
Before your God.
Say nothing.
Ask nothing.
Be silent.
Be still.
Let your God look upon you.
That is all.
God knows.
God understands.
God loves you
With an enormous love,
And only wants
To look upon you
With that love.
Quiet.
Still.
Be.

Let your God—
Love you.

There is nothing we need to do for God.  We think God has a big ego, but God is egoless and has no needs.  Yet, we strive and work so hard to get on God’s good side.  Often our religion also gives us the sense that God needs something from us.  Even in our worship – our singing, our praying, our offering, our meditating our talking and preaching about God, our attending services – there is a sense that God needs our worship and is waiting for it.  Yes, we feel connected to God when we sing and pray, but again God doesn’t need it.  What if instead of trying to fill God’s needs we let God fill ours?  Oh, some may object that this sounds self centered and that we shouldn’t attempt to get God to satisfy our needs. But at times, isn’t our praying and praising an attempt to coax God to do something for us, or to change God’s mind in some way about us – that we really are good people, doing something good and worthy of love?  And now God if only you would love us!?  And yet aren’t we God’s children?  And isn’t one of the most beautiful images of faith a child who crawls up into their parents lap and just rests and feels the warm embrace of a loving Father or Mother?  And doesn’t the parents’ heart delight as they love their child simply through embrace, acceptance and warmth?

God’s nature is giving.  God is lavishing all of his love and himself on us right now in this very moment, holding nothing back.,  The flow of love is constant, unending, ceaseless and yet the only thing missing is our awareness of it and attention to it.  So maybe we would be best served in our life, our faith, our religion if we learned how to be in this love.  To just be.  Though I think there is a different interpretation of Psalm 46:10 that we are accustomed to – that God is telling the nations to know that he is in charge and it’s really not about our devotional life at all, the words of the verse can still lend themselves to this purpose well – to practice being in the presence of God.  Free from having to fill any of God’s needs (of which he has none) and letting him fill us with an awareness of his love that surpasses knowledge (Eph. 3:19).  This, I believe is one of the secrets of life and faith.  (Maybe God does have just one need?  To fill our need  for love?!  For we are transformed through this love of God.)

Using Ps. 46:10 as a prayer, with the breath can perhaps help us to get to this place of being.  A simple way to use this might be to simply be with each phrase for a minute until we get to the last phrase and just BE for however long you need as you picture God’s love flowing to you and letting God love you.  Consider holding your hands open, as if receiving a gift, which may help you bodily feel these words more deeply in your heart and soul.

Be still and know that I am God…

Be still and know that I am…

Be still and know…

Be still…

Be…

BE…

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