The first, most basic, and perhaps most difficult step in the spiritual life is to experience the love that God has for us. Nothing we do earns that love. Nothing we can do can make us lose that love. St. John in his first epistle states it bluntly: God first loved us. We imagine we have to do something to get God to love us — say our prayers, go to church, keep the commandments. But no, God loves us first, just as we are, just for being who we are. Think of a grandmother seeing her grandchild for the first time. She loves that baby just for being her grand. That is how God loves us — for we are part of the family of God!
