It was just a short, simple note, really; but I kept reading and re-reading the words on the small piece of paper my newfound friend had given me before leaving. There were only two or three sentences, but they were deep words of thanks and encouragement that lifted my soul. She wrote of how evident God’s grace was in what I had done for her, and how the Lord was glorified in the victory of the spiritual battle she overcame. 

It struck me then just how much the note encouraged me. I was having a rough morning, caught up in sinful thoughts of worth and self and time when God tenderly stopped me through the words of my friend. I found my mind re-focused, worshipping God for his goodness.

That morning, those few strokes on that piece of paper made all the difference.  

What about you? Maybe you’re at a rough spot in your ministry, where you keep watering and watering and nothing is growing. Maybe you’re tired of the mundane; the never-ending chores around the house, the cooking and cleaning and the kids always getting into some type of mess. Or maybe you’re the one in trouble; at a point in your life where you realize you’re stuck and you just don’t know the way out. 

Whatever it is, it’s not the end. Moreover, it’s not hopeless; because your ordinary days and routine life, lived for God’s glory, matter. 

And when those sinful thoughts come, threatening to swallow you up; preach the Gospel to yourself. Open Scripture and let God encourage you, reminding you of who you are in Him. 

But don’t stop there. Take a minute to write a note to someone who God has used in your life to bring about some type of change. Who knows? Maybe they’ll need it now just as much as I needed it then…