“Loved by the Person who made me”

If I were to describe a pivotal moment in my faith, it would be the first time I went to adoration. It was at a retreat in my freshman year of high school, and below the altar was a picture of Jesus' face, surrounded by lights and roses. On the altar was the Eucharist in the monstrance. 

As I went up to kneel before the altar, with the picture and the Eucharist, I had never felt so loved. I looked from Jesus' face to his body above, and both gave me a feeling that I was completely and perfectly comfortable in who I was, because I knew that God created every part of me and loved every part of me. That first time, I was so overcome by the presence in that room that everything cleared out of my head except for the phrase, over and over, "I love you." 

Ever since then, adoration has been my favorite form of prayer. Being there with the Blessed Sacrament is the only time when I can let down every single guard of mine and just be loved by the Person who made me.