Thanks for joining us for this daily encouragement from the Our Daily Bread Devotional.

Today's reading was written by Amy Boucher Pie, and it's titled Dwelling in Our Hearts.

Sometimes the words of children can jolt us into a deeper understanding of God's truth.

One evening, when my daughter was young, I told her about one of the great mysteries of the Christian faith,

that God, through his son and spirit, dwells in his children.

As I tucked her into bed, I said that Jesus was with her and in her.

He's in my tummy?

She asked.

Well, you haven't swallowed him, I replied.

But he's right there with you.

My daughter's literal translation of Jesus being in her tummy made me stop and consider how

when I asked Jesus to be my Savior, he came

and took residence within me. The Apostle Paul referred to this mystery when he prayed that the

Holy Spirit would strengthen the believers in Ephesus so that Christ would dwell in their hearts

through faith. With Jesus living within, they could grasp how deeply he loved

them. Fueled by his love, they would mature in their faith and love others with humility

and gentleness while speaking the truth in love. Jesus dwelling inside his followers

means that his love never leaves those who've welcomed him into their lives.

His love that surpasses knowledge roots us to him, helping us to understand how deeply he loves us.

Words written for children can say it best. Yes, Jesus loves me.

Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from Ephesians chapter 3,

verses 14 through 21. For this reason, I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.

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