You're never unloved

This wedding season is for many a joyous time full of love and celebration. For others it may be fraught with stress, envy, anxiety, and self-pity.

While some individuals may be dealing with wedding plans or even doubts and fears about marriage, others may feel a sorry sense of being excluded from the party. They may believe that the promise of committed and lasting companionship is not theirs to enjoy, or that such a promise has been unfairly broken through loss, divorce, or lack of harmony in relationships.

But in truth, none are left out of the “marriage feast.” None can truly be outside the divine Love that human unions can only hint at and gratefully celebrate. It’s never too late for each of us to find contentment, wholeness, and completeness. Nor can we be burdened by the feeling that there’s not enough time to plan and carry out a wedding or plan for a major change in one’s life.

The answer to both circumstances is not found through human efforts or recourses, and time itself can neither bring us peace of mind and heart, nor take it away. The love that has its source in divine Love, perfect Love, is already and always ours. Jesus reminded his disciples and all of us, “Your joy no man taketh from you” (John 16:22). Harmony, peace, and satisfaction don’t come through an individual, and another person’s (or even our own) action or inaction can’t take any good away from us. Our oneness with divine Love is an eternal constant. True love – that which is divine and spiritual and unfailingly wise – has always been with us and will forever be ours.

Divine Love, God, alone knows who we really are and never fails to cherish us. God has always been our Father-Mother and friend, and we have always consistently been tenderly and uniquely loved. “To those leaning on the sustaining infinite, to-day is big with blessings” wrote Mary Baker Eddy (“Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,” p. vii). That promise in the opening lines of the textbook of Christian Science is not exclusive but all-inclusive. God’s promise, His covenant of oneness with us, is forever kept. Each day His tender faithfulness is renewed, and we can naturally respond by accepting this devotion and the fact that we are worthy of it and ready to know this Love even better every day.

As we find evidence of God’s love in our lives, we can stop believing in the lie that it is absent for us or for anyone. This opens us up to see and receive what is truly there, what God has prepared specifically for us, in this blessed moment, lovingly and with perfect timing.

I spent many years single, wondering (and agonizing over) whether I was destined to forever be alone. At times I thought that might be my preference. I struggled with both possibilities, settling on neither and feeling confused, looking everywhere for an answer, for closure. I couldn’t seem to relax and just live each day with gratitude and peace.

When I married, I was in my 40s, and it felt so natural, despite all the previous wrestling. We had a June wedding on a hot but beautiful Texas day. All the stresses and the worries in the months before the wedding had seemed overwhelming. But looking back, I realize that each moment during our engagement brought me new opportunities to learn and practice patience, trust, compromise, all of which are vital to a marriage. The wedding was a loving and fun event, just like the marriage has been.

If I had known and gratefully accepted that God’s presence and grace were with me all along, and that nothing was missing from my life, I think I would have enjoyed my singlehood much more, feeling wedded to Life and all it had to offer in each new moment. I had always been loved, loving, and lovable – just as we all are. Nothing had changed. Love had not come or gone. It had just found new ways to express its enduring presence and faithfulness.

Right now you are treasured, and tomorrow you will continue to be. We can become newly wedded today to divine Love. We can accept our eternal union with our perfect Life, God, and delight in this joy.

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