“We love because He first loved us.” — 1 John 4:19

Today I’m reminded of the beauty and mystery of love—specifically the love God creates between two people. As I celebrate Rachel’s birthday, I’m struck by how deeply God’s fingerprints are seen in the love we share. It’s a love that often feels too profound to fully understand, and that’s because its origin isn’t human. The God of the universe authored it.

If God is the creator of our love, then it makes sense that we can’t fully comprehend it. But there is something incredibly sweet about that mystery: we get to explore it together. Love becomes a journey of discovering more of Him, and more of the ways He designed two hearts to grow, stretch, and reflect His nature.

God uses relationships not just to bless us, but to shape us. Loving someone gives us daily opportunities to become more like Christ. It teaches us to lead by serving, to strengthen by encouraging, to cherish by laying down our own desires. It is the call of Christ to die to ourselves so that His love can live through us.

As I thank God for Rachel today, I ask Him to continue teaching me how to love her with a Christlike heart. To lay down my life as Jesus did. To grow in patience, tenderness, and sacrificial love. And to always remember that the love we share is a divine gift—one meant to draw us closer to Him and closer to each other.

Prayer:

Lord, thank You for the gift of love and for the people You place in our lives to reveal more of Your heart. Help me love like You—sacrificially, joyfully, and faithfully. Continue shaping me into the kind of person who reflects Your love in every word and action Amen.