Proverbs 25:25 - Ice Cold Love Letters

"Good news from far away is like cold water to the thirsty."

Proverbs 25:25, New Living Translation, 2015

My wife and I met--and fell in love--in Alaska and the Yukon Territory in the summer of 1984. That fall, she went back to college in St. Paul, Minnesota and I returned to seminary in Deerfield, Illinois.

Our courtship continued without the internet, Skype, e-mail or cell phones. Phoning on land lines was limited by the cost of toll calls. So we relied on the United States Postal Service. I would check my campus mailbox multiple times a day. When there was a letter from her, I preferred not to read it with other people around. I would carry it until I had privacy to read and re-read and re-re-read it. They were handwritten notes to savor that way.

Think of a time when you received unexpected, good news from someone "far away." Maybe they sent a card or letter by snail mail. Or an email or text. A posting on social media.

What was the distance that had separated you from them? Maybe they lived many miles away. But distance can be due to other factors like time constraints. Or maybe emotional distance for whatever reason.

Doesn't it make your day to hear from them?

Lord, remind us of someone who needs to hear from us, who needs to hear some good news. Give us the words to be a source of refreshment in their lives. Amen.