No one need protect themselves against love. True self-protection doesn't conflict with love at all. When you love and serve others, you're loving and serving your self. And what's good for the goose is good for the gander.

Also: It's actually loving to protect oneself for the sake of being good for others, or for God. For example: When people have children, they naturally become a bit more concerned with their own survival. They want to be there for the children. They know better than to risk their lives casually, etc. The same is true when people get married, or make any significant love commitment. But at the same time . . .

Self-protection as a chronic, fearful pattern is unhealthy, destructive, and anti-loving. For example: when the opportunity for love comes along, the habit of guarding one's heart and hedging one's bets is ruinous. And so is the tendency to put oneself first to the extent of hurting and depriving others.

It's bad news when, in the good name of self-protection, people turn less good, less nice, than the loving person they want to be -- less loving than the person they are. In that case -- whether they know it or not -- what started as self-protection has become self-rejection (and self-misdirection).

Here's an astonishing fact: Love is the BEST, most effective means of self-protection. That's right! Here's why: Love will protect you from the awful results of an unloving life. As you know, unloving attitudes bring out the worst in people, and attract all kinds of trouble. For example, what if you are chronically fearful? Then, sensing your fear, the junkyard dog will bite you. Similarly, if you fear people, it will bring out the worst in them. And so will any other unloving attitude: anger evokes anger, hatred spawns more hatred, pride rubs people the wrong way, etc.

And without a doubt, the most protective thing about love is this: When you're busy loving, you are too busy to do the other things you might be doing (many of which would be hurtful to you).

Also, when you love, the "birds of a feather" principle protects you in various ways:

1. Birds of a feather flock together. That means, as a genuinely loving person, you will attract to yourself loving people. People who love you will surely help and protect you in various ways. But as an unloving person... well, you're not doing yourself much good by the type of people that attracts!

2. Birds of a different feather UNflock -- they go their separate ways. That means that, if you are genuinely loving, people who don't want to play on that level will tend to veer off. (Of course, that's not to say that, every time people run away, that means you were too loving for their taste. A person needs to be honest here.)

Lastly, love heals all wounds -- including wounds that might otherwise create endless pain. Love heals loneliness, guilt, misery, hatred, and shame.

So you see, the best way to protect ourselves, and ensure our well-being, is to love.

Such is the connection between Love and Self-Protection.