Adult Education: February 2011

Becoming an instrument of God’s love

By Lorene Hanley Duquin

It’s February, and all around us we see cards, candy, flowers and other symbols of love that we can give to family members and friends to show how much we care about them for Valentine’s Day.

But imagine for a moment that you wanted to do something special for God this Valentine’s Day.  Imagine that you asked God to make you an instrument of his love to other people.  Imagine that you could let God’s love flow through you to everyone that you meet.

Sound interesting?

The first step might be to imagine that you empty yourself of anything that is not of God.  Then imagine that God filled you with his love.

You can start by turning your breathing into a prayer.  Take a deep breath in and imagine that you are breathing in God’s love.  Then breathe out anything that is not of God.   Here are some of the things that you might want to breathe out so that God can allow his love to flow freely through you:

 Breathe in God’s love, and breathe out any tension or anxiety.
 Breathe in God’s love, and breathe out fear.
 Breathe in God’s love, and breathe out negativity.
 Breathe in God’s love, and breathe out anger or resentment.
 Breathe in God’s love, and breathe out worry.
 Breathe in God’s love, and breathe out questions or doubts.
 Breathe in God’s love, and breathe out judgmental attitudes.
 Breathe in God’s love, and breathe out any prejudices you might have.
 Breathe in God’s love, and breathe out envy.
 Breathe in God’s love, and breathe out selfishness and pride.

Now breathe quietly for a few minutes and imagine that God’s love is flowing through you.   Ask God to allow his love to flow through you to touch other people.  Ask God to make you an instrument of his love.

As Catholics we have a long tradition of using our imagination in prayer.  St. Ignatius of Loyola incorporated imagination as a component in his Spiritual Exercises.  He encouraged us to place ourselves in a Scripture passage and let our imagination help us  to understand the passage more deeply. 

Why not set aside some time during February to use your imagination to ask God to fill you with his love?