The relationships you have in your life (or not) are a direct reflection of your self image.  Such a strong statement, but true!

Relationships do matter.  They can be complicated and usually are as diverse as the people you attempt to form them with.  Always identify the kind of relationship you are forming.  Know the boundaries of any relationship.  Good relationships are based upon a mutually agreed upon covenant.  Many relationships in our society today are suffering under the economic pressures this country is facing.  Thousands have lost jobs, homes, health insurance, and valuable human resources (relationships).  They based relationships on the belief that things and the people would always be the same so there was no commitment to ride out the bad times.  Agape Love will enable you to ride out the bad times.

No man is an island.  We all need others.  God created us to be relationship minded.  What you want to do is master the art of relationships.

We are given two commandments by God found in Matthew 22:37-40
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.
This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

We are commanded to love!  Love is not an option, but it is a matter of choice.  God commands us to love Him and our fellowman because He has given us what we need in order to do so.  The Love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost.  So when we are commanded to love, it is with the Agape Love that God has given to each one of us.  Likewise, you must love yourself with this same Agape Love as you are expected to love others. 

Agape Love is everlasting, unconditional, long suffering, forgiving, patient, giving, and self denying.  It demands nothing from the other party.  Agape Love always has the best interest of the other person in mind.  The fruit of mutual Agape Love is Covenant Relationships.  (Refer to the Tab on Covenant Relationships).

What God was saying then and even now is that love provides discipline in our lives.  Love constrains our behavior to do what is right towards others.    What is right is determined by the Word of God.   Love is determined by the value you place on someone or something, but it begins with the value you place on yourself.

I find it interesting that God commands that you love your neighbor as yourself.  Question is, how do you love yourself?  Have you ever considered what it means to love yourself?  Take a few moments and do a love test.  Take a sheet of paper and divide it down the middle.  On one side write out the things you love about yourself and on the other side write out the things that you dislike about yourself.  Take a few extra moments and complete the love test for three other people you know.  Complete this exercise before continuing on!  Now take a moment and review your choices. 


What was the criteria that you used to measure how you love yourself?  When you review the things that you love and dislike were they based on physical, natural qualities, were they based on your character as defined by the Word of God, or were they based upon your status in life and your worldly possessions?  Now note what similarities you see between what you wrote about yourself and the other three people you selected.


God's Agape Love only judges based upon the content of ones character because it is a direct reflection of ones heart condition.   Physical qualities can be enhanced, but in most instances, not changed (how tall you are, your skin color, etc.).  Do you embrace how God has made you, or do you loathe His workmanship.  You are spirit, soul and body.  Are you doing everything you can to take the best care you can of your total being.  The Bible defines you as being fearfully and wonderfully made.  How do you define yourself?  Your status in life and your worldly possessions are all corruptible and will fade away.  But it is your character that determines your eternal end.  It is your character that causes you to love or despise your neighbor, as yourself.  You can only love your neighbor as much as you love and appreciate yourself!

Perhaps there are areas in your life where you need to receive the healing balm of Jesus.  You have but to repent for hating yourself and, and ask the Holy Spirit to heal you everywhere you hurt.  Release any unforgiveness in your heart towards anyone.  Make the daily confession that you forgive (?) for hurting you.  Forgiveness is an act of your free will and it may sometimes require that you forgive yourself.  Your healing may take awhile, but continue to confess that you are healed by the stripes of Jesus, and continue to forgive and release those who have hurt you.  You will know when the spiritual work is done.  (Remember that sometimes after many years those old emotions will attempt to resurface.  But you have the victory through the words of your confession). 


Learn to love and appreciate yourself with the Agape Love of God.   It is the Agape Love of God with which you are to love others.  The Agape Love of God should proceed all other forms of love.  Most often people try to love each other with their natural human love, but it is never enough.  Human love places to many requirements and conditions on oneself and others.  Human love tends to change with what you see, how you feel, what another can or will do for you and what society demands. 


It is impossible to love God whom you have not seen and hate your neighbor/brother whom you see daily.  Such a one is a liar and the truth does not abide in him!  Likewise it is impossible to exercise your faith without the Agape Love of God being present in your daily life.  Faith works by love.  It is by your love that the world will know that you are a follower of Christ. 


The results of loving yourself will be endearing relationships that transcend time.  Agape Love is Ageless and Seamless!