--A TIMELY MESSAGE ~~

--"I have written to you...encouraging you."
--[1 Peter 5:12] --

--I LOVE EMAIL! It's a casual, almost instantaneous way of communicating, especially with our children, some of whom are currently living in Africa. But I also miss the special pleasure of receiving "snail-mail"--noting the stamp, slitting open the envelope unfolding and holding in my hand words put to paper by someone who cares about me.

It seems like a lot of trouble to write a real letter--find the stamps, select some stationery, find the address and pen that works. But we have some friends who help me keep that "inconvenience" in perspective.

Several times a year we get letters from our Tanzania friends, the Kimambos. We've been in their home, and we know they don't have a drawer devoted to varieties of note cards and letter paper, as we have in our study. Our last letter from them was written on two sheets of paper from different school tablets, held together with a straight pin. And because they don't know English, they have to walk to a friend's house and dictate their letter to her in Swahili, which she translates into English and writes down . Then it's off to the stationer's to buy an envelope, and to the post office to buy a stamp and mail the letter. Their letters are a great gift to us, a source of encouragement and joy.

Isn't there someone in your life who would appreciate hearing from you today? Find some paper and a pen. Writing a letter is a wonderful way to tell someone you care.

--ODB/MJC~