By Father John Catoir • Catholic News Service • Posted May 1, 2015

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “To thine own self be true,” spoken by Polonius in one of William Shakespeare’s works. These words have an important meaning in everyone’s life. This saying means we should follow what our conscience tells us in order to be true to ourselves.

But we should be true to ourselves with the certainty we’ve been told about since we were children: that God loves us.

If you’re the kind of person who wants more control over life, your thoughts and your feelings, then make Jesus the Lord of your life and believe that he wants you to live joyfully because you know he loves you. This should allow you to live without anxiety.

If you’re the kind of person who wants to grow in self-respect and win the respect of others, then make Jesus the Lord of your life and live joyfully because of the knowledge of God’s love.

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If you’re the kind of person who wants to be remembered as someone who made a difference in this world, then make Jesus the Lord of your life and live joyfully because of the knowledge of God’s love.

If you’re the kind of person who believes in an afterlife and wants to attain the goal of eternal happiness, then make Jesus the Lord of your life and live joyfully because you know he loves you.

If you’re the kind of person who wants to believe deeply in the forgiveness of sins and who knows that the good we do in this life will live after us, then make Jesus the Lord of your life and live joyfully because God loves you.

If you’re the kind of person who feels that you need greater strength to accomplish your most noble intentions, then make Jesus the Lord of your life and live joyfully knowing God loves you.

If you’re the kind of person who wants to be liberated from anxiety, fear and doubt, then by all means make Jesus the Lord of your life and live joyfully because you know God loves you.

If you’re the kind of person who believes that secular values have contributed to a lowering of ethical standards and want to follow the highest values of the human spirit, then make Jesus the Lord of your life and live joyfully because God loves you.

If you’re the kind of a person who wants to be a saint, not primarily for your own glory but for the glory of God and for the good of souls, then make Jesus the Lord of your life and live joyfully because God loves you.