God’s Mail

If you were a mailman, what would you do with a letter addressed to God?

Would you…

A.  Read it
B. 
Throw it away
C. 
Return it
D. 
Take it to a church

Recently, a mailman in Lafayette decided to go with option “D.”  And he picked Faith Church, of all places.  (Isn’t it cool that our church would have the kind of reputation that would lead a postal worker to send us God’s mail?)

So, I faced the daunting task of figuring out how to respond to a letter addressed to “God and Jesus,” in “Heaven.”  The letter was from a little girl who wanted to find out if God was having fun with her grandpa and dog who had recently died.

Wow.

How would you have responded? A letter like that demands some kind of response when it comes across your desk, doesn’t it? But how do you respond to something like that?

I was genuinely stumped.

Until someone suggested that I simply respond as “God’s servant.” Of course! After all, we are God’s visible representatives on this earth, right?

I won’t go into all the details of how I responded to the letter, but it got me thinking about several questions.

How often am I conscious of my position on this earth as God’s representative?

Obviously, I could not speak for or as God when I responded to this little girl. But in some sense I did represent God in this situation. I was responsible to share God’s truth and love with this little girl on God’s behalf.

But that shouldn’t feel unique! We are constantly representing God to wondering boys and girls who watch our every move.

How often do I consciously live Coram Deo–before the face of God?

When we talk to kids, are we conscious that we are to speak and act in light of God’s presence in the room?  Do I simply recite worn-out platitutdes or do I teach and live with a consciousness that this truth is God’s truth that He has entrusted me to share?

I hope that thinking about these questions re-energizes you to live and teach faithfully. Remember that you are God’s servant—His representative. What an amazing gift of grace that is!

Scott Allison
Scott is a pastoral intern at Faith Church. He and his wife Courtney work in Children's Ministries at the church.