<p>Many people struggle to love others because they're running on empty, trying to be fountains instead of vessels. The key insight from 1 John 4:9-11 is that we love because God loved us first, not the other way around. Common blocks to receiving this love include wounds from conditional love, shame about our failures, performance-based thinking, and feelings of unworthiness. When we truly understand that God's love was settled 2,000 years ago at the cross, we can stop trying to earn love and start receiving it. This transforms us from exhausted fountains trying to generate our own love into vessels that receive God's love and pour it out to others.</p>
