According to a story on Yahoo, while Julie Keith was unpacking some decorations she found a letter hidden in the packing material. Apparently the letter was from the Chinese laborer who had made the decorations.

The letter was a plea for help: “Sir, if you occasionally buy this product, please kindly resend this letter to the World Human Right Organization. Thousands people here who are under the persecution of the Chinese Communist Party Government will thank and remember you forever . . . People who work here have to work 15 hours a day without Saturday, Sunday break and any holidays. Otherwise, they will suffer torturement, beat and rude remark. Nearly no payment (10 yuan/1 month).” Convert that to the monetary system of the USA, and you get about $1.61 a month. http://shine.yahoo.com/work-money/letter-chinese-laborer-pleading-help-found-halloween-decorations-202400773.html

When I read this story, I thought: How tragic! As I thought about the letter Julie Keith found, I began to see a parallel to another letter that often goes unread and unnoticed.

Most people call this “letter” the Bible. Even though it is found in the homes of many people around the world, it is often covered with the dust of neglect.

This letter from God had been translated into more than 2,000 languages and dialects. In 1998, worldwide distribution through the combined efforts of Bible Societies totaled 20.8 million complete Bibles, 20.1 million New Testaments, and 19.4 million portions of at least one book of the Bible.

The best known passage of the Bible may be John 3:16: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (NIV).

Another version of this passage is found in The Message: This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.

Why not find your copy of God’s letter to You? Dust it off; flip through the pages; and, you will find another plea. It is a plea not for help, and an offer to help: Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly (Matthew 11:28-30 MSG).

Every time I read this letter, I find plenty to keep me thinking.