Merry Christmas! I hope you had a beautiful time with the people you love most.
I’m assuming that, like me, you received some wonderful cards from friends and family far and near.
And I’m assuming that after the holidays are over, you don’t know what to do with those cards.
Well, I have an idea for you to use those cards in order to bless your loved ones over the course of the next few months, or even the next year.
Here’s the idea: find a cute little basket and place all the cards inside. Keep the basket somewhere that you will see it regularly (I suggest the centerpiece of the dining room table!).
Each week, at the beginning of your week, take the top card out of the basket. Take a few minutes and re-read the card, especially if it came with a letter outlining the family’s highlights and events.
Then, commit to praying for that person or family for the entire week. You can do this on your own or, if you sit down with your family to eat dinner together, do it as a family. Or do both!
Pray for that family faithfully all week long, letting the Holy Spirit guide your prayers and listening for any insights He may give you.
Then, at the end of the week, sit down and write a letter to that family and let them know that you have been praying for them! Tell them how you prayed and include anything you felt from the Holy Spirit as you prayed.
I guarantee that you will bless them, and you will be blessed!
Next week, choose the next card and do it all over again.
BONUS TIP:
Before you throw away the envelope that the card came in, make sure you have the address noted somewhere! You may have a method of keeping addresses, but just in case you don’t, let me tell you how I do it.
I went to Walgreen’s photo center and I bought a small photo book. It’s the kind that holds 4×6 photos, two per page, because I wanted it to be pretty small; but another size would work too.
I also bought a pack of 3×5 index cards.
I write one family’s info on each card and slip them into the photo sleeves. I put the address, but I also write notes to myself: the names of their kids and their ages as well as any important information I read about in Christmas letters.
I don’t worry about filing the cards in alphabetical order, but I could if I wanted to.
The reason I really like this method is because if the information changes, all I need to do is make a new card and replace the old one. It works way better for me than an address book, because I don’t have to deal with all the crossed-out names and addresses, and I really want more room to keep notes.
Please let me know if you will be using your Christmas cards to bless friends and family in this way, and let me know in the comments if you like my address book tip!
Blessings, Mindy