Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Today's reading titled, Loving God, was written by Anne Cetus.

The professor ended his online class in one of two ways each time. He'd say, see you next time, or have a good weekend.

Some students would respond with, thank you, you too. But one day a student responded,

I love you. Surprised, he replied, I love you too. That evening, the classmates agreed to

create an I love you chain for the next class time

in appreciation for their professor who had to teach to a screen on his computer,

not in-person teaching as he preferred.

A few days later, when he finished teaching, the professor said,

See you next time.

And one by one, the students replied,

I love you. They continued this practice for months. The teacher said this created a strong bond with his students, and he now

feels their family. In 1 John 4, verses 10 through 21, we, as part of God's family, find several reasons to say, I love you,

to him. He sent his son as a sacrifice for our sin. He gave us his spirit to live in us. His love is

always reliable, and we never need to fear judgment. He enables us to love him and others because he first loved us.

The next time you gather with God's people, take time to share your reasons for loving him.

Making an I love you chain for God will bring Him praise and bring you closer together.

Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from 1 John chapter 4, verses 10 through 21.

This is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son as an

atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one

another. No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is made complete in us.

This is how we know that we live in Him and He in us. He has given us of His Spirit, and we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his son to be the Savior of the world.

If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God.

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