Greetings are dependent upon the reason for the greeting. Saying hi to a stranger on a street is maybe part of your witness as it is mine. Being friendly is a good thing. Greetings through email or social media or even just texting tend to be more instant and not as important as that phone call or knock on the door. We can tell a lot about a greeting from facial expressions and tone of voice. Neither of which we get through email, text or social media. Unless of course you attach a picture. It's hard to be "in the moment" with these types of communication. When you are face to face with someone or on the phone you can have greater insight to what is really going on. Being able to "read" people is important in our daily interactions. Why all this focus on greetings? Glad you asked.
I had a greeting with an old friend (44 years old) whom I hadn't heard from in some months. She connected via messenger to see how I was. Sensing that there might be more to this than she was letting on I learned that her husband had died last month. Needless to say it was important we converse. She and her husband were believers. I didn't know he was in poor health at 56. They were newlyweds and had been married only a few months. After a couple of chats back and forth I called her on the phone and talked with her. There were lots of grief issues that began to boil to the top. I let her talk. At one point she said, "I shouldn't be bothering you." To which I replied that this wasn't a bother at all. My friends are important to me and when they are in need like she was, I'm available. We talked for some time and she was feeling better at the end of the conversation. She was happy that we had talked. I will be talking with her again. Her voice said she would like to have a call again. She didn't need to say the words.
My 15 year old daughter and I like to text, chat or just call and talk. She has this habit when she is nervous or things aren't okay where she adds: "hahah" after her text or chat message. It's a cue I've picked up on when she wants to go deeper and talk about things that bother her. I'm not sure that others pick up on it but perhaps they do. My 19 year old son connects with me when his self-confidence is low. So, when I receive a text (his chosen way of communicating) I pay attention. He never starts with his feels but goes straight to the facts. I listen and then when he gets to the real reason for his text, I reassure him of who he is in my eyes and in God's eyes. My other kids have their separate style of greetings as well. I just want you to understand that we can see and hear what is going on in people's lives if we will take a moment reflect.
It's the same way with our greeting God in prayer or just the activities of our daily life. If we are in the habit of greeting God with only our immediate needs then our relationship is limited to a "want" mentality. When we approach God with our "needs" it's another story entirely. When we seek to be with God in prayer our needs and wants don't really matter because we are focused on God and our love for our relationship with him. There is an old acronym ACTS as a formula for prayer. I normally like to go with the flow and let the Spirit guide me. However ACTS is a wonderful way to develop a prayer life. A: Adoration, celebrating the greatness and goodness of God. C: Confession of our failures and of our sins. T: Thanksgiving for all that we have received, been blessed with. S: Supplication, asking God for what is really on our hearts. It's a simple formula but you get the idea of what the sequence is all about. It's about priority. It's all about putting God first. This "attitude" can also be used for greetings from and to friends. When we encounter a person we can see the best or worst. See the best. We can look at what they have done or not done. See the best. We can reflect on where they have missed the boat or failed. See the best. We can be thankful for their presence in our lives. See the best.
You don't know who is depending on you today. Choose to grasp the moment and use the greeting to bless someone...anyone. You and they need it. It's your choice.
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