What gift will you give to Me today? That is the same as to say: What gift will you give yourself today? Certainly, you will not ask too much of yourself. That you would ease into life and not make so many demands on yourself – that, alone, would be a great gift to Me. You have, indeed, been demanding. In your estimation, you have never quite made the mark. In your estimation, you always fell short. There was more you were supposed to be. There was more you were supposed to do, so you tell yourself.
Now, I will tell you to do less and ask less of yourself. I will tell you to allow yourself some sense of satisfaction, sense of job well done, not almost done, not sort of done, but done, and done well.
I am asking you to be nicer to yourself. Be easier to please. Be happy with less.
Heretofore, you may have set standards impossible to fulfill. Sometimes, I swear, you are like a donkey who has been beaten every day and is so used to it, he has come to expect it, as if something would be missing if he were given a little praise and encouragement instead of a beating!
Will you no longer be like that donkey? Will you give yourself some grace? Will you stop beating up on yourself? When are you going to? When would you begin to see yourself in a very good light? You may think I am asking you to forgive yourself for all your inadequacies. I am telling you that there is nothing to forgive, except perhaps, for being unappreciative of yourself.
I want to tell you that I know you do the best you can, and that is good enough for Me. Can that not be good enough for you? Can you not embrace My child as I would wish that you be embraced? Begin now to let go of all the perceived impediments and accept yourself as a blessed Being. You ask too much of yourself. You ask to be perfect in the eyes of the world and everyone in it. Do you see how you ask a lot?
I ask you to go easier on yourself.
If you did not make the bed today, that’s all right. I don’t mind. Whatever you didn’t do today, it’s okay with Me.
I adjure you to find less fault. I adjure you to find no fault at all. I adjure you to love yourself more, and life more, and the world and all those other imperfect people in it more. I am asking you to be a child of God who is easy to please. Will you be that child for Me? Will you kindly take pleasure in daily life every day? Will you, as a matter of fact, beam at the world and call it yours and love it for all you are worth?
Yes, will you look at everything through different glasses? I think you have perhaps been too near-sighted. I think you have perhaps been looking at yourself through a microscope. Start now to look at yourself through the lens of love. When were you going to, beloveds? When were you going to be nice to yourself? Some day is not soon enough. Change the direction of your thoughts today, right now, this minute.
Acknowledge that you are not so bad. Acknowledge that you are good, indeed, very good, excellent. Why on Earth, beloveds, would you be fussier than I am? I like you. I appreciate you. I love you. If I can, why can’t you? Be generous, and love yourself, and don’t give yourself such a hard time.