More Than Writing Words
When most people hear the word ‘ministry’, they often picture a pastor preaching from a pulpit, a missionary serving overseas, or a worship team leading music on Sunday morning. While these are wonderful expressions of ministry, they represent only a small part of what it means to serve God and others. At its heart, ministry simply means meeting the needs of people with love, compassion, and humility. Sometimes ministry happens in a hospital room, in a food bank or homeless shelter, or over a cup of coffee with a friend. Here, ministry happens at a kitchen table with a pen in your hand and an empty sheet of paper waiting to be filled.
Whether you feel called to such a work is between you and God, but seeing as you are three chapters deep into a book about letter-writing as a ministry, I can safely assume that you’re feeling prompted by the Holy Spirit to partake in this wonderful act of service!
You might be asking yourself why label it as a “ministry” at all. You can, of course, write letters to whomever you wish without adding such a label to it. Whether you call it a ministry or not, that is what it is when it is done in service to others. Writing thank-you cards to people who have sent you a gift isn’t ministry but good manners! Writing letters of hope and encouragement to people you may or may not know for the sake of serving them best is ministry, especially when there is no benefit of doing it for yourself. Ministry is often defined as a work done in response to a religious or spiritual calling, so you can ask yourself: do I feel called to partake in such a work? Not just any work, of course, but acts of service, charity, or spiritual care done to help others, so ask yourself if what you intend to write is an act of service and care for the person receiving it.
If you feel that you are going to write letters because you feel called by God to, and that you are going to do the work to share love and hope with other people, with little to no benefit for yourself, then yes: welcome to the ministry of letter-writing!
It is a wonderful work. It requires an attitude of servitude and humility. The reward on earth is the cashier at your local stationery supply store knowing you by name, and the regular hand cramps that come with it. The heavenly reward is infinitely greater!
Ministry Without Recognition
One beautiful aspect of a letter-writing ministry is that it often happens quietly. There is no stage. No applause. No audience. In many cases, no one besides the recipient will ever read your words. That can feel unusual in a culture that often celebrates visible accomplishments. Yet Jesus frequently taught that acts of kindness done in secret matter deeply. We must choose to focus on faithfulness over any kind of fame it might bring.
Not every ministry needs public recognition. Some of the most meaningful acts of service happen where no one else is watching; the note slipped into a mailbox, the birthday card sent to a nursing home resident, the encouragement mailed to a missionary, or the sympathy letter written after everyone else has moved on. These unseen acts become beautiful expressions of God’s love.
We sometimes measure success by numbers. How many people attended? How many books were sold? How many followers do I have? But God often measures faithfulness differently. Imagine writing only one letter each week. That seems small. Yet after one year, you will have encouraged more than fifty people. Continue for ten years, and you may have written over five hundred letters.
On my first Christmas of writing to seniors, I reached out to a local care home to see how many residents might be interested in receiving mail from a stranger. The final number was 350, far higher than I had anticipated. Nervously, I did the math, having already committed to the project. With just over three months to write, I found that three cards a day up until the prearranged Christmas drop-off date would allow me to hit the full target. Three cards a day seemed a loss less intimidating than the full number, so I got to work. The first cards took me ages! It was hard to know what to write. But in time, I found my rhythm, and soon the envelopes were piling high around my writing space. If that first Christmas project taught me anything, it was not to focus too much on the bigger goal, but on the card right in front of you… And then the next one… and then the one after that too.
Word by word, card by card, you’ll be surprised how quickly the pile grows! But at the end of it all, it’s about each person you’re writing to, so don’t let the big numbers distract you (though it’s good to have goals) from the heart of it all. Each card represents a person, and the care and attention to detail you place in each one tells them just as much about you as what you may know about them!
Looking for Opportunity
One of the greatest gifts a letter writer can develop is the habit of listening. Sometimes that means listening carefully during conversations, and other times it means remembering details people casually mention, such as “I have surgery next Tuesday” or “My daughter starts college this fall.”
Weeks later, when everyone else has forgotten, your letter arrives. It speaks volumes, primarily, “I remembered you.” That simple act communicates profound care. Good letter writers become attentive observers of people’s lives. They notice birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, losses, milestones, and prayer requests. Ordinary conversations become opportunities for extraordinary encouragement.
One letter can brighten someone’s day, but many letters can transform a relationship. Consistency communicates commitment. It tells people they have not been forgotten after the crisis passes. In fact, many people say the weeks after major life events are when they feel most alone. A thoughtful letter sent a month later can be just as meaningful than the dozens received during the first week.
If this kind of ministry will teach you anything, it is to recognise opportunities to encourage others, and not necessarily always through letter writing (though this will be our main focus!) In times I’ve wanted to write a letter but couldn’t think of someone to write to, a quick internet search has told me what national holidays or days of remembrance are coming up. Mother’s Day is the time to remember women who may find such a day difficult, and the international day of prayer can be the reminder to write to churches or believers that they are a part of a larger body of believers. In seasons where I’ve wanted to write to someone but haven’t had the capacity to work independently, I’ve partnered with existing letter-writing groups and joined them in their mission, writing letters to homebound neighbors, children with cancer, or family members serving in the military. Whatever your capacity or calling, there will always be someone to write to if you look hard enough!
Ministry Across Generations
One of my favorite characteristics of letter writing is that nearly everyone can participate. It’s a multi-generational ministry, and those can be hard to find at times!
Children can draw pictures and write simple notes, teenagers can encourage younger students, and adults can write to missionaries, caregivers, and friends. Retirees, especially, often have time to develop thriving correspondence ministries and have so much wisdom and life experience to draw from. Families can gather around the dining room table for a monthly “letter night” as friends of mine already do every Sunday afternoon with their kids.
Imagine an eight-year-old child decorating a birthday card while a seventy-eight-year-old retiree writes to a prison inmate. Both are participating in the same ministry, and both are spreading hope. Teenagers especially have the ability for personal growth as their perspective of the world widens through learning about other people’s experiences and potential hardship. They may not yet have much life experience to write from but the impact this kind of work will have on their lives can last a lifetime!
Ministry becomes a shared experience rather than an individual task when done in collaboration with others. While my own son is still a bit young to participate fully, the occasional letter I send does contain a few colourful squiggles from him. As he grows, I hope to invite him to participate in different ways, from putting stickers on the cards to helping me deliver them locally.
[Check out my other blog posts offering guidance and inspiration for anyone interested in letter-writing as a ministry!]
