At the beginning of Covid, I began sending letters/emails to people going through tough times. This letter started because my uncle was in a facility and Mom and I could not visit him. He loves jokes so to make sure he was laughing I began to send him jokes along with some encouragement. I worried about one of our volunteers at church who loves to tell jokes. She lives alone and was feeling isolated and I wanted to make sure she was laughing. Soon I began to send to people going through tough times for whatever reason. Three years later I am sending out almost 200 letters.emails a week. As I send these letters I pray over them. What I hear from most people is this makes them feel connected to church, this is the only time someone laughs and some people have visited my church after receiving the letter. Another church and a Sunday school class uses the letter. Many people say they copy it or forward the email to others.
As I was sending out a new letter, I thought about how great God is! He wastes nothing! He used a hard time in our life to bring encouragement to others. Someone is going through something that you can help them with. God just wants us to share the Good News! He can do the rest! 1 Corinthians 3: 6-9, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.” We are all called to be God’s coworkers!
I had no idea how God could use this simple letter to my uncle. He just nudges us to do something and if we are obedient He makes it better than we can imagine. Isaiah 55:8-9, "'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the Lord. 'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.'" My uncle shared the jokes with the staff at his previous facility and then they passed it on to others. One lady thought it was mail for her and every week she was excited because she had no family and got no mail. God is so good!
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