1 John 4:19 - "We love because He first loved us."

I loved when my kids would say the words, "Mommy sandwich!"...then my daughter gets in front of me and my son gets in back of me and they squeeze me real hard until I cry out for relief! Even our dog, Benny, gets all excited when we do this! I feel so loved by them. You've been there too, right?! When someone says, "group hug!!", then everyone throws their arms around each other in a huddle. It feels so good to be loved.

Years ago, I was spending time with God and thinking about how great it is to "receive" God's love. I sensed His love so strongly, and I just started saying, "I'm receiv'n Your love, I'm receiv'n it, thank you Father". Then I imagined Jesus joining us with His arms around me too, then I heard the Holy Spirit say, "Group hug!", and felt His arms around me too, all three just loving me, with smiles on their faces and making that "mmmm" noise when you grip someone tight in a hug! I know it sounds crazy but, talk about feeling loved, God's love feels SO good and it's so real.

I can truly understand why God wants us to receive His love...it's the only way we will be able to give it away!