Unconditional Self-Love Requires Unconditional Self-Acceptance

Finally! Over the past 40 days, I have chosen to accept SO many things about myself that I had previously (i.e. all of my life) refused to accept. I let go of my learned need to compare myself to others and to always come up short. I released my need for self-persecution, mental chaos and emotional drama.

The doorway into self-love is total self-acceptance. This requires examining all of the things about ourselves that we have chosen to be embarrassed about, or even hate, including past behaviors, and bringing them into our conscience presence. We can do this by taking time to examine ourselves, the things we’ve never liked about us, and writing them down (Think Step 4). Then it requires handing them over to our Higher Power and asking for help to accept all the things we have forever refused to accept about ourselves.

The more we work at it, the easier it becomes. We slowly stop making harsh judgments against ourselves. We feel lighter. We start looking in the mirror and seeing our true wonderfully made selves, instead of seeing all of the old judgments we used to make against ourselves.

We wake up in the morning more content with ourselves and our lives. We begin to breathe and feel real happiness. We become “reasonably happy” with ourselves and with life, just like the full version of the Serenity Prayer says.

The key to happiness is always in our hands. We just have to make the commitment to use that key to open the door to the fullness of life that God has always had planned for us. Unconditionally choose to accept yourself just as you are today. Take that key in your hand and open the door to happiness that God has given you, then, hand in hand with your Higher Power, choose to walk through that door. Even if it means walking through old fears and pushing yourself beyond your comfort zone. Life, love and happiness are on the other side of that door. Believe it!