Chosen to be loved—1,000 times over

How do you learn to love yourself more?
Maybe by learning how much somebody else loves you. . . .

I’ve been on this count-up—from 0 to 1,000—for awhile. Jot down three blessings from God a few days a week, no duplications, when I remember, and as time allows.

Sometimes big things (mission trips, anniversaries, tornadoes), but mainly small. Just ordinary things, in unexpected places, one situation at a time. Things that might go unnoticed otherwise.

But reminders that, yes, somebody besides me is loving me daily. More intricately than I can. More wisely than I can. More faithfully than I can.

When I arrived at blessing # 995 last week, I got nervous. Shouldn’t these final blessings count big? Important ones to tip me over to 1,000?

Instead, I just saw more little things. Like,

• fresh blooms in the house (# 996)
• a new box of hope for spring planting (# 997)
• tickets for laughter at a comedy show (# 998)

But then came blessing # 1,000 . . .

• finishing the count EXACTLY two years to the DAY that I started

Significant? Maybe not in the grand scheme of things. Not to anybody else.

But to me? It’s too coincidental not to count it as another gift from God. A final touch of whimsy, an exclamation point at the end to make me smile.

And to remind me how much I’m loved even in the details. All the way to 1,000.

Maybe these simple blessings are the ones that add up the most after all.

Yes, the Lord continues to give me big graces along the way, too, but he gives me little graces every day. Every single day.

I learn from that. Not that I’m so intrinsically lovable, but that he chooses to love me anyway. Over and over and over. That counts for a lot in my book.

* * *

Do you count blessings, too? What’s one you’ve received today?

More blessings to 1,000