I recently received a card/letter of encouragement from someone at our Church. She is one of the newer members, and I don’t know her personally all that well. But when I received this sweet note from her in the mail, it caught me off guard, and made me realize several things.
- People are always watching. Whether you realize it or not, your life impacts others around you. (Either for the good, or for the bad.) We must be so careful to always let our light shine for Christ.
- We need more people willing to be an encouragement to others. It is so rare for someone to buy a little gift, or drop a note in the mail anymore, simply to show love to someone else – with no expectation of anything in return.
- While text messages are nice, and often very timely, there is just something special about getting a letter in the mail. Seeing someone’s handwriting, and knowing they took the time and thought of you is precious.
- Many people nowadays don’t know how to even write a letter or card to someone. Few people even write thank you cards anymore.
Will you join me in committing to be a “letter-writing-encouragement” this week to someone?
Here are some pointers from Paul in 2 Timothy chapter 1 on how to encourage someone with a letter:
vs 2 – wish them well.
vs 3 – let them know you are praying for them. (And actually pray! Nothing is worse than saying you will pray, and not following through.)
vs 4 – tell them what a blessing it is to serve the Lord with them, or simply to be their friend.
vs 5 – it is ok to mention loved ones that have gone on. Don’t pretend they didn’t exist, share fond memories!
vs 6 – remind them God has big plans for them. Sometimes in the monotony of every day life, we lose sight of the bigger picture of why we do what we do.
vs 7-12 – remind those who may be going through hard times, that the struggles we face in this life are not to bring us fear, or strife, but to draw us closer to Christ, and show his power in our lives.
