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The other day, I met a man who was holding a cute little girl. I soon found out it was her one-year-old birthday. She looked around at everybody taking it all in, but you could see in her eyes that she didn’t know what to make of it.

As I spoke to the man, I learned that he and his wife are foster parents. He shared with me that over the years, they had taken in eighteen children, and the little girl he was holding was number nineteen. I know some people become foster parents to receive state money, but you can tell this couple does it because they genuinely love children.

As I talked to the little girl, wishing her a “Happy Birthday,” and all, I got a sense that this small child came from a home where love did not exist. I imagined she heard a lot of shouting and hateful words. She had probably cried more tears than one her age should have. I was moved as I began to realize this little one was “new to love.” For the first time in her life, she was going to be loved on and feel what it is like to know God’s love. I was happy for her.

Some people go a long time before they feel “loved.” Some may go for a lifetime without knowing it. If they haven’t experienced God’s love, they can. By accepting his Son, Jesus, into their life, they have all of their wrongdoing forgiven. You begin trusting God with all aspects of your life, and when He does things for you that blow your mind, you feel loved.

Seeing God love on people is one of the things that will get me to tear up quickly. It’s amazing. I got the experience last week to do a favor for a lady in the grocery store. She couldn’t reach an item that she wanted. Now, I’m not that tall, but I was tall enough that day to help her. The funny thing is, I changed how I normally shop in that store, allowing me to be at the right place at the right time. I saw her in the parking lot and I stopped to let her know that God wanted to love on her when she needed help. She said she was aware of that and felt his love.

Whether new to love, real love, God’s love, or not, being loved and feeling love is a wonderful thing. I think that is why it is the foundation of all that God does, and of who He is. It is also why his word emphasizes love so much for those who follow after him.

My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God. 1 John 4:7-10 (MSG)

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