Perhaps being loved generically is better than not being loved at all. But better still is being loved personally – for someone to see and be responsive to our personal needs and desires. This is what we long for from each other. And maybe without naming it as such, it’s what we long for in our relationship with God as well.
For instance, it’s possible we thought our parents didn’t love us growing up because they seem to pay more attention to a sibling or they always seemed very demanding of us. It’s then comforting to realize with maturity they loved us deeply in their own way. We were not missing love per se, but it wasn’t personalized in a way that delighted our souls.
Certainly, with maturity we realize love is not simply getting everything we want. At the same time, there was something our young souls were craving that remains true, good, and beautiful – the personal touch of love.
To be sure, we can and should be grateful for every gift of generosity God blesses us with. But a check from our insurance company is not the same as a neighbor coming over and helping us in our time of need. The love from our neighbor is personal. He sees us and is personally responsive to the needs of our particular story. In a similar way, our parents meeting our basic needs is the bare minimum of parental obligations. Our souls are touched more deeply when they take the time to know our unique interests and celebrate us personally.
This is often a secret desire we bring to our relationship with God. While we know he loves the world, which includes us, we often doubt he loves us personally. But this is not an immature desire, or one we must otherwise suppress.
God does see and love us personally, though we must often pray for the eyes to see and fully receive his love.
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