I am my beloved's,

  and his desire is for me.

Why is the bride so beautiful?  Standing stately in her white wedding gown her beauty is unmatched by any other.  How does such beauty come to exist?  Because the bridegroom loves her into it and she believes in his love.  His life is given to her and she responds by blossoming beauty; wave upon wave flows out of her.  If she were to doubt the groom's love her light would be bedimmed.

And so it is with the soul before God.  The more it believes in God's unconditional love for it the more beautiful it becomes.  The great saints of old had a flowering faith in God's immense individual love for them specifically and they acted on that love by obeying Him.  Foremost among these was Mary most holy who stands as a towering figure at the front of the caravan of the faithful.  More faith was asked of God's own mother than any other and so "Blessed is she who believed" (Luke 1.45).  Hot feet on hot sands goes the pilgrim mother and we follow in her train.

But what if the bride begins to doubt?  She weighs more than she would like.  She thinks she is too tall or too short.  She thinks she's too shy, too awkward or not charitable enough.  She worries that she won't be able to respond to the love of the groom.  She worries about her past, that something will come to light.  And the groom senses a shadow fall over his beloved.  His heart is still ravaged but his longing is all-consumed with a desire that his bride believe in his love.

Believe in my love!  Why do you doubt it?

Look away from yourself.  See my love for you!

All else falls away when you believe in my love

you become more beautiful than you can possibly imagine.

Thus it is with the soul burdened by doubt that God can love it because of its many defects, its lack of good works, it's sinful past or present, its weaknesses, it's fear that it cannot love God back or respond to his invitation, its worry that it will not persevere, be found suitable or be judged.

Oh my soul recall that even after man's fall in the garden God longed to come and walk with him.  "Where are you?"  God called out.  "I was afraid so I hid," said the man.  (Genesis 3.9-10)  Become a child again so you may enter heaven.  Believe, and become beautiful.  Hear God boast about you before the entire heavenly court: "I am my beloved's and his desire is for me!"