M E R I D I A N     M A G A Z I N E

V O I C E S

You've Got Mail
by Karen R. Merkley

His messages always come at precisely the right moment-not a nanosecond too soon, never too late.

I'm 43, or is it 44 now, and I still get flickers of anticipation when I walk across the street to check the snail-mail, wondering if there might be a handwritten letter with my name on it. I admit to similar feelings when I pop up Outlook Express, double-click on "Retrieve/Send" and wait for the verdict to display. It's always a refreshing boost to see "You've Got Mail" or Unread Messages: 4" appear on screen. I often will catch a glimpse of senders' names, click on one, and enter the joyful world of cyberspace connections. And, frequently, I am changed by them. I can't imagine a day without checking my mail.

I must confess that I feel the same way about checking my scriptural mail. As I open the scriptures, I think, in a way, "You've Got Mail." And I wonder what God has to say to me today. Almost inevitably, I discover some scriptural note with my name on it-a specific message from a loving Savior and Father, hand-tucked into a stack of celestial memos pre-dating me but post-dated for my needs.

I marvel that His messages always come at precisely the right moment-not a nanosecond too soon, never too late. Incredulously, too, His messages never get hung up in the network nor are they intercepted by someone else before they reach me. And, hooray, I don't have to sort through and delete those from other advertising sponsors-they are all from the One perfectly selfless Sponsor worthy of every trust.

I also appreciate that these divine mailgrams come to me not in ASCII or some other undecipherable code but in a language I'll understand-one compatible with my spiritual programming and capability and even preferences. Yes, they appear perfectly formatted for my own eyes, ears, and heart-my own degree of spiritual literacy or illiteracy. They are flawless in style, content, and delivery.

I am often awestruck at just how these perfect, prepared celestial memos are laced within the scriptural network for my retrieval. And I relish the fact that there's at least one hit-usually many--for every occasion. Not only that: It's as if some of these divine messages come with their own kind of celestial stamp. Some, for example, seem to be sent overnight--"Celestial Express"-- reaching me in the morning after a dark or thoughtful night, bringing me dawn. Some seem to be stamped "Urgent"-carrying immediate instructions for perplexing situations and critical needs. Others seem marked, "Special Delivery"-carrying a revealing anecdote or pattern of import for a special talk, occasion, need, or desire. Some read, "Proposal"-offering a much-welcomed solution to an intractable problem. I often find those marked "Personal and Confidential"-offering the inside story to an outward event; others marked "Please Circulate" or "Please Forward"-with content to be shared with a sister, friend, or daughter, or group. At other moments, I seem to read over a passage the red-blocked letters, "Paid in Full"-indicating verses providing insight into the Savior's sacrifice for me. In other instances, I've been pleasantly surprised or rewarded with a message lettered with, "Just for You," as if to say that no one else would really get this in quite the same way. Some messages seem simply stamped with a Magic Marker smiley-face in the margin or above the verse, indicating something like: "I knew you'd be traveling this way today." Others are marked, "FYI"-illustrating just how that certain something I've been contemplating really "fits in" with the bigger picture. Then there's one highlighted, "For Your Beehives"-illustrating a word of love and instruction for those for whom I have stewardship. I believe there's a stamp equivalent to "Imagine That!" for those verses that reveal something just so spectacular or that uncover something once so elusive or especially desired.

There they are--no password needed, just one beautiful, continual, available network of messages--messages that define our experience before we can; messages that show us how to manage our lives, our callings, our professions; messages to show us how to our "I's"'s and cross our" t"'s; how to overcome; how to see things we've never seen; to have hope; to find peace; to know the way is right-or wrong; to find the strength to carry on.

Don't you just love it? Sometimes there is a follow-up memo for emphasis Sometimes the same memo is re-sent because it got lost in our own spiritual memory. Sometimes the memos invite us to seek more in the stack before us-to do a scriptural net search or some serious surfing. Sometimes they invite us to our knees or to an action or word that is needed. Sometimes they give us a new look at our lives. Any way they come, they simply delight--and even take our spiritual breath away. Perhaps it is because the Word is Love. And the Spirit of love they bring is irresistible.

Isn't it a marvel that the full network has been restored! We've got it all at our fingertips. Isn't it a marvel that the Lord knows where we are and what we need. We never have to fill him in on new area codes or addresses. There are never any glitches in His celestial communication. He even turns the light on for us. All we have to do is to strive to do His will, seek Him, retrieve our mail and import it to our hearts and minds. It's more than a virtual reality. It's real and lasting part of our journey through this mortal space. It's the way we feel His signature across the pages of our lives.

So check your mail today. Thank your spiritual Provider. And then please, oh please, write back.