Thoughts for the Day

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honour. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are.

(Church in Wales Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

At Secretarial College when I was fifteen years old I was taught to put "Your faithfully" at the end of a letter when I had started it with "Dear Sir" or "Dear Madam", and to put "Yours sincerely" when it began with someone's name, eg "Dear Mr Brown". I followed this rule all my life until emails came along and took over from printed letters. I would then often add "Regards" at the end, but somehow this didn't quite hit the spot. Then in the spirit of another ending that we use a lot - "Goodbye" - which actually means "God be with you" - I have started to use "Blessings". By this I send God's blessings upon each person I contact.

In our reading today from St Paul's letter to the Romans we see him instructing the new Christians how to behave. You might like to look through the list above. Be honest, which do you find easy to follow, and which do you find difficult? Then take one of the latter and try to follow it, reviewing it in a month, say on 1st July. Did you improve your track record in this area? Oh, and how about adding God's "Blessings" at the end of all your messages?

Heavenly Father,
may we learn to love others
as you love us;
to wish each other peace;
and continue to gro closer
to You and each other.
May we also ask your blessing
on all with whom we come into contact.
Amen.