"God doesn't love us because we are good, He loves us because He is our Father." St. John Chrysostom

Love is a gift, which is never earned, but responded to with love. It is God's nature to love freely. It is our nature to receive love and to respond in love. God' doesn't have to prove his love for us. He shows it in many ways from creation, to redemption, from adoption to glorification. It is up to us to recognize his many signs of love and to be grateful in response. If we truly know that God loves us, we would want to respond by doing that which pleases him out of love. Both the prodigal son and the angry elder son did not recognize the love of their father. Both felt that they were owed by the Father. Sometimes we feel the same way about our Heavenly Father. Everything he has is ours. He generously loves us beyond measure. We need to take our eyes off ourselves and be awed by the truth of the reality of his love. Then we will be set free.