Last week I received the gift of two well-timed and much-needed kind words that lifted my spirits and brought true joy to my soul. Neither person offering these blessings had any idea that the sweetness of their words would bring healing to me in such a significant way.

For those who have been following along for a while now you may have noticed that the frequency of my posts has diminished over the past few months … well the last twelve months if I am truly honest. Lots of good reasons I tell myself that are really only poor excuses related to being out of sync with my new location and demands of my life.

One of the things I have been grappling with is that I spend time putting thoughts on the virtual page and sending them off into the world without much understanding or appreciation of their benefit to anyone else. While this is not the reason for my creativity in this space, it helps keep the motivation high when the internal desire is not.

Don’t get me wrong … I am not seeking comment or praise, and I know that my posts are more about me externally processing moments in my days that help me make better sense of the world. It would just be nice to know that my ramblings are not just a clanging gong in this already noisy world!

Last week one of my previous posts regarding ‘Keeping the joy in life’ was published in one of The Salvation Army’s national websites. While this has happened before, the thing that made this occasion different was the email I received from a colleague officer (minister) sharing their gratefulness for my honest reminder about the same sorts of issues that she has faced in her life.

The email was only 5 sentences long but highlighted the importance of sharing stories with honesty and vulnerability. I felt a sense of pride that my intention had been expressed and interpreted as intended. It also gives me motivation to be more diligent in sharing my stories.

A few days later I received a simple text message, again just a couple of sentences long, to let me know that the family of one of my church members had specifically prayed for me and my family that night. They then added an observation regarding the success of an event I had recently run with our church leadership team and the belief that it indicated a healthier state of our community under my leadership.

That particular day I had found myself focussing on some of the areas of church that weren’t as far along as I was hoping for them in our journey together. I was not giving myself the grace to recognise that I often look at these things in a giant magnifying glass so they appear very large, while the positive things I view through the wrong end of a telescope so they are very small by comparison. This simple encouraging text message brought a tear to my eye, and a reprimand to my heart about holding more realistic expectations.

In the book of Proverbs in the Bible there are many verses about the value of a kind word. One of my particular favourites is found in chapter 6, verse 24 which says, “Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” That was certainly the case for both of these uninvited messages. Both were sweet to my soul and healing.

What it has also done is highlight the importance for me to share some ‘honeycomb words’ with others. Knowing how significant it was for me to read encouragement spurs me to be more deliberate in following through with the thoughts of goodwill I often have but never getting around to sending. In this day and age of instant messaging there really is no excuse to let these opportunities slide.

I am wondering if there is anyone that you need to bless with some honeycomb words? Why not join me in seeking opportunities to bring healing to others too?

Be blessed.