READ: ECCLESIASTES 4:9-12; 1 THESSALONIANS 4:9-10; 1 JOHN 3:16; 4:19

For my birthday one year, I expressed a desire for a chia pet. I’m not sure what appealed to me about these plant “pets.” They consisted of a clay flowerpot, usually shaped like an animal, that you filled with water. The water soaked through to the exterior of the flowerpot where it would nourish chia seeds spread into thin grooves in the clay. Ideally, the seeds would sprout and flourish, and the owner would end up with a lush miniature garden in the shape of a kitten, a llama, or maybe a hedgehog.

Though I didn’t expect to open one of these on my birthday, it turned out I received two. First, my cousin Geneva mailed me one. Then, my friend Brenner shipped me one. Two chia pets, both in the shape of a hippo! Even though I tried, I never could grow the hippo-shaped greenery. But I certainly did feel loved by Geneva and Brenner. They loved me well.

God knows we need each other. At the time of Creation, He formed Adam and then—declaring that it wasn’t good for this man to be alone—God fashioned Eve (Genesis 2:18). He created human beings to know Him and experience His love. And even after we rejected God, He sent His Son to die in our place so we could enter a relationship with Him. So now, as His forgiven children, we can revel in His love for us. And because He loves us, He provides others to love us too.

Jesus laid down His life for us. That’s how we know what love is (1 John 3:16). When brothers and sisters in Christ bless us with affection and tenderness— especially in ways they know will connect with us—we get glimpses of Christ’s generous love. I hope to overflow the love of Christ to others, as Brenner and Geneva did for me, because I have experienced that love for myself. • Allison Wilson Lee

• Have you ever received a thoughtful gift, a kind word, or some other gesture of love that spoke to you in a personal way?

• Who is one person in your life who shows you God’s love? If no one comes to mind, you can ask God to connect you with someone in the future or help you notice people He has already placed in your life.

Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. 1 Peter 1:22 (NIV)