Only Two Words on the Stone
The Apta Rav wanted only Ohev Yisroel carved on his matzeivah, and behind that wish stood a daily intention of the heart.
His grandson, Rav Meshulam Zusia of Zinkov, tells how the Apta Rav's sefer received its name. The Rebbe had a saying he repeated often: that of all his traits, this was the one he could take pride in, even before the Heavenly Court. Love for every Jew was fixed in his heart.
Chassidim relate what stood behind those words. Before each mitzvah, the Apta Rav said the Leshem Yichud, the formula declaring that his act was meant to bring Hashem and His Shechinah together, on behalf of all Israel. Each time, he meant it fully. He had in mind that every Jew, including the one who seemed furthest away, should have exactly the same merit and portion in the mitzvah that he himself had.
Before he passed away he gave his children one request about his matzeivah: no titles and no words of praise, just Ohev Yisroel, and that is what was engraved.
His grandson chose the same two words as the name of the sefer, so that the book of the Rebbe's teachings would carry the one thing he had asked to be remembered for.
Source: Introduction by Rav Meshulam Zusia of Zinkov to Ohev Yisroel (Zhitomir); the Leshem Yichud intention as cited in Kav Venoki, Vezos Haberachah 37b
Before your next mitzvah, whether a bracha, a coin for tzedakah or a few lines of Tehillim, add one silent sentence: let every Jew share in this, including the person I find hard to like. Say it for someone specific if that helps, perhaps a relative you are distant from or a stranger on your street. You do not need to feel warmth first. The Apta Rav treated love as a decision made again each day, and one sentence at a time is enough to begin.