Focal verse
“Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:3).
Reflection
On the second shelf of a large bookcase in my office sits a clear plastic box filled with letters. The earliest letters are from 1990, when I was 8 years old. I’ve saved letter after letter from a pen pal telling me about her life on a North Dakota ranch. She cared for horses and cows, mended fences, loved reading (especially Little House on the Prairie) and delights in her Scandinavian heritage.
The two of us were matched 33 years ago, when my family signed up for the U.S. Postal Service’s pen pal program. Since then we’ve continued to connect through letters.
Last summer I traveled to her home in North Dakota, where we spent a day on her ranch. The stories about her growing up that I’d read for years sprang to life as we walked the prairie, shared conversations over meals and took in the town’s history at a museum.
When we write a letter by hand, we get the chance to slow down. Our words can point to the beauty in our day-to-day lives. We write letters and share about the places we visit, our days at school, our summer vacations and the food we eat.
Every letter we write can be a little love note for our lives and the people who read our words. Isn’t that what Scripture is? A love note from God to God’s people?
What I love most about writing and receiving letters is the intentionality of connecting with someone through words. Our words have the power to inspire and encourage. They can soothe a broken heart and remind someone they are not alone. In Scripture we have God’s word written for us, to pour love and grace into our lives.
This month take time as a family to write a letter and immerse yourself in God’s word, reading the Bible as God’s love letter to you. Remember that a letter is never just a letter but also a means of grace and hope in a world where we get to be a bearer of light for others.
Practices
- Get together and read aloud one of Paul’s letters to the early church (1 Corinthians, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians).
- Find stationery or lined paper and write a letter by hand. Maybe someone in your congregation needs a word of encouragement, or you’d simply like to get to know them better. Perhaps you have a classmate you haven’t seen over the summer who would enjoy getting a letter.
- Write messages of hope and love (“God loves you,” “Someone’s thinking of you,” “Keep going,” etc.) on postcards and leave them in places where people will find them—inside books at the library, on a park bench, at the post office or at a restaurant.
Prayer practice
Write your prayers as a family. The act of writing or drawing them can be a prayer in itself. Parents can supply prompts and take turns filling in the words. Consider prompts such as “Thank you, God,” “God, please be with ____” or “We love you, God.”
