Devotional Reading
We are born with a desire to love We desire to love and to be loved because God is love (1 John 4:8). That is how God made us. But because we are human, somewhere along the way, we all get a little confused about the right way to experience love. And it can create a lot of hurt and pain in our lives – lack of love, broken love, bad love, toxic love. These were never meant to be a part of our experience with love. No, we were supposed to learn about love at the knee of our Father.
Jesus came to restore what was broken in us so that we could experience the love of our Father again. Not that it wasn’t always there and available. We just couldn’t receive it. But when we are made new in Jesus, we can experience the purity and enormity of God’s love again. We don’t have to go anywhere else to be filled up. That is a place in our heart that only belongs to God. And the funny thing is, the more we pull our love from our First Love, the better we will be at loving others, and just as important, the better we will be at loving ourselves. When we find our love in Jesus, we learn to love ourselves just as He loves us.
Scripture Reading
[1 John 4:7-12 NKJV] Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.
Candle Lighting
Today, we relight the candles of Hope, Peace and Joy, and now we light the candle of Love. Choose one person to relight the first three candles, and as you light the fourth candle of Love give thanks to your Savior for the love that saved you. Because God so loved the world, He gave His only Son, that whoever would believe in Him would not perish, but have everlasting life! Thank God for the love of our Savior!
Prayer
Lord, thank you for your great love toward us who believe! Just as Paul said in Romans 8, we are persuaded, “that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Your love for us is great! Thank you for sending your Son so that we can experience your overwhelming capacity to love us. Thank you for calling us worthy of your love! In Jesus’ name, Amen!
Reflection Questions
Take Action
Find an opportunity this week to demonstrate love to a friend or family member. It could be buying fresh flowers for your mom or wife, taking a grandparent out to breakfast or printing a favorite picture with a loved one and giving to them with a heartfelt note.
We are born with a desire to love We desire to love and to be loved because God is love (1 John 4:8). That is how God made us. But because we are human, somewhere along the way, we all get a little confused about the right way to experience love. And it can create a lot of hurt and pain in our lives – lack of love, broken love, bad love, toxic love. These were never meant to be a part of our experience with love. No, we were supposed to learn about love at the knee of our Father.
Jesus came to restore what was broken in us so that we could experience the love of our Father again. Not that it wasn’t always there and available. We just couldn’t receive it. But when we are made new in Jesus, we can experience the purity and enormity of God’s love again. We don’t have to go anywhere else to be filled up. That is a place in our heart that only belongs to God. And the funny thing is, the more we pull our love from our First Love, the better we will be at loving others, and just as important, the better we will be at loving ourselves. When we find our love in Jesus, we learn to love ourselves just as He loves us.
Scripture Reading
[1 John 4:7-12 NKJV] Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.
Candle Lighting
Today, we relight the candles of Hope, Peace and Joy, and now we light the candle of Love. Choose one person to relight the first three candles, and as you light the fourth candle of Love give thanks to your Savior for the love that saved you. Because God so loved the world, He gave His only Son, that whoever would believe in Him would not perish, but have everlasting life! Thank God for the love of our Savior!
Prayer
Lord, thank you for your great love toward us who believe! Just as Paul said in Romans 8, we are persuaded, “that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Your love for us is great! Thank you for sending your Son so that we can experience your overwhelming capacity to love us. Thank you for calling us worthy of your love! In Jesus’ name, Amen!
Reflection Questions
- How do you best experience love?
- How do you show love to others?
- Why does giving demonstrates love?
Take Action
Find an opportunity this week to demonstrate love to a friend or family member. It could be buying fresh flowers for your mom or wife, taking a grandparent out to breakfast or printing a favorite picture with a loved one and giving to them with a heartfelt note.
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