It could be that bill you’re dreading or a long-awaited result.
Or maybe a letter from a friend if you still wrote/receive letters. Or even a birthday card or an Amazon package.
Whether mail is good news or bad, life often includes both. And both good and bad news can help us sometimes.
Nehemiah 8:9-10 says, “And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law. 10 Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”
Bad news might be just what we need to change.
The good news is that through Jesus we can change.
The Jews with Nehemiah celebrated and also got busy: Just a short time later we see them deal with the bad news in an amazing way:
Nehemiah 9:3 And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the LORD their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the LORD their God.
The Word of God revealed their sin, and instead of ignoring it or trying to cover it up, they dug deep, confessed it, and moved ahead with God.
Sometimes it takes the bad news to help us get to the good news.