[...] I do believe we can love someone and still not enjoy being around them a lot. Don’t forget that love is not necessarily having loving feelings, but a decision to treat people as God instructs us to treat them.

When you read about loving everyone unconditionally, you may feel there are certain people you simply cannot love because of how they have hurt you or because they may still be abusive, and being around them would not be safe for you. You can love everyone, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to spend time in their presence. Pray for people, don’t speak unkindly about them, and help them if they need help, but always remember that you have a right to safe relationships.

Realizing that I can love from a distance has been extremely helpful to me. I once felt, as you may feel, that loving someone meant I had to spend time with them, but it doesn’t. [...]