This post was last updated on March 29, 2026

Day 1 (Year 2)

The Loving Heavenly Father

“See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.” (1 John 3:1 NASB)

The word translated “love” here is the Greek agape, meaning “goodwill, brotherly love, affection, beloved, benevolence.” This verse reveals just how loving the heavenly Father truly is — but how do you feel about that? Do you deeply resonate with it, struggle to agree, or feel little at all? If you find it difficult to sense the Father’s love, this year’s devotionals were written with you in mind. Many people feel that the Bible is distant and disconnected from their daily lives — but this is precisely why we are called to meditate on Scripture, so that our hearts may enter into the Father’s great love.

Today’s verse speaks directly to this: many naturally associate past pain and hardship with God, concluding that He cannot be loving. This is likely because of an understandable but mistaken projection of personal experience onto the Father’s character. Suffering is indeed a shared human experience for both believers and unbelievers alike. Yet the key truth is this — through Christ’s redemption, the Father has made believers His very own children, which has the power to transform our emotions when we experience suffering. In other words, suffering can actually drive us to seek the Father and His love. He bestows us the authority to be His children, so that through knowing Him, we no longer have bitterness toward suffering. When we understand His purposes within our pain, we can receive the strength of His love, be changed according to His will, and even feel His great love and find joy in the midst of it.

Even more importantly, becoming children of God empowers us to overcome sin, the evil one, and the sufferings of this world, enabling us to experience the Father’s presence — a joy of the spirit that surpasses any earthly pleasure or stimulation. For those who feel lost in this world, the most urgent need is to return to the heavenly Father, and this begins with trusting in Jesus’ atoning sacrifice. Being “called children of God” is not merely a change of title — it declares that the Almighty Father is loving and utterly dependable. This requires a profound transformation of our hearts and minds, including knowing and embracing the salvation found in Christ, so as to truly treasure what it means to be the Father’s child and to experience His boundless love.

Reflection questions:

1) Do you believe that the almighty heavenly Father is truly loving? Why or why not?

2) Are you able to separate the pain of difficult experiences from your perception of the loving heavenly Father? If not, how might you rely on the Lord to bring about that change?