bad sympathy cards

Today I ordered some cards online. I like having birthday cards and such on hand, so I can send out a card when the occasion presents, and I've been getting a little low.

While I was ordering, I looked at the sympathy cards that were available. It's not something you want to have to send, but there you are. The problem was, most of them were awful. They came in packs, and while there was always at least one I could see sending (usually something along the lines of, "With sympathy . . . we're praying for you"), most of them were atrocious. It ranged from the cutesy-pukey ("How good it is that all the tears we ever cry are collected by angels") to the theologically bad ("Those who have given of themselves to others will live forever in each heart they have touched" - as my husband says, "what are you saying? Jesus lives in my heart, my uncle's gone to heaven!").

I decided that for times that call for a sympathy card, I'm going to stick to getting out a blank notecard and praying that the Holy Spirit will help me write good words.

That's something I've started doing with cards generally. I really started doing it when I was writing thank-you cards during my hospital stay. I'm still not great at writing cards, but I'm finding that when I ask for the Holy Spirit's help in sitting down and expressing some good thing - gratitude or encouragement or joy or sympathy - He does help me. It's still not a great skill of mine, but He helps clear my mind to focus on the task, on the person I'm writing. It feels like He helps me in loving whoever I'm writing to, and that's what really helps me actually put decent words down on paper.

So next time you sit down to write to someone, I encourage you to pray first.

Actually, it's also something I've taken to doing before I answer the phone or when I log onto my email. Usually it's a short prayer, something like, "Lord, please be between me and whoever is on the other line." But we are to pray without ceasing, and though I'm not perfect at it, these small interactions are another place I've found where I can invite the Holy Spirit into my day-to-day life, which is, of course, where He has the right to be anyway. And it helps me pay attention to what He might want me to do or say.

peace of Christ to you,
Jessica Snell