It’s fun to get Valentines from friends. It’s always nice to know that someone likes us. Did you know that someone very important loves you and thinks you are special? That “someone” is God!

In a way, God has sent you a Valentine. It’s not in a card but in the Bible, God’s book. The Bible says that God’s love is so great that he sent his Son, Jesus, to earth to save us from the consequences of  wrongs that we’ve all done! Sins are bad things we do and disobedient choices we make. Those sins often get us in trouble. But the worst consequences are that our sins keep us from being able to obey and please God. They also keep us from going to heaven when our life on earth is over.

So, Jesus came to die on a cross to take the punishment  for our sins! It was the only way we could be forgiven by God and receive the gift of eternal life. Three days later Jesus rose again, proving he had conquered sin and death.

You can personalize God’s “Valentine” by writing your name in the blank in this quotation of John 3:16 from the Bible. Try it…“God so loved _______________, that he gave his only Son [to die in your place], that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

It’s amazing that Jesus would do that for us. But that’s how much God loves you and wants to forgive your sins. He has made it all possible, and there’s no other way to know God. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

There’s no other way to be saved from sin’s consequences. But God won’t force you to believe: you must agree with God that you have sinned and that Jesus died for you. If you truly believe that with all your heart, you can tell God in your own words, something like this: “Dear God, thank you for loving me so much. I do believe that Jesus died for me so I can be forgiven. Thank you for the gift of eternal life.”

There’s no Valentine better than John 3:16!