Thursday, August 3, 2017

Dear One, A Letter of Hope During These Five Obstacles

This is but a short letter of hope to my younger self that I wish I would have had before going through these obstacles in life. I hope this message brings you hope in whatever obstacles you are enduring.

Dear One, 

You are young, naive, and have much to learn. You also come bearing enthusiasm and joy. Adulting can be hard, but oh so rewarding! These are (a few) obstacles that you will face in life...and ways you can get over the wall with a stronger faith.

True criticism. Know this: do not take it personally. Learn from it, make changes, and move on. Adapt when necessary. You enjoy rolling with the punches and change (for some odd reason), and criticism is the perfect avenue for that if that is the perspective taken.

Loss. By this, I mean true loss--not getting your butt whooped on the basketball court and running lines for it. This one seemingly came out of nowhere, but put your hope in the Lord. Cling to the truth. Hope should be put nowhere else but in the Lord, for all else will fail.

Wandering into the Unknown. Seek truth every time. Trust that God has a plan and what seems to be the unknown to you is still part of His greater story. He's the Alpha AND Omega. Enjoy the unknown (and whatever season comes after) and hope in the Lord.

Decisions to Make. By golly, be confident in yourself and in the decisions you make. There are big and small ones coming. Use the small ones as practice for the big ones. Talk these decisions out and seek counsel, but let your 'yes' be 'yes' and your 'no' be 'no.' It's biblical, you know!

Entanglement. Simplify your life. Give All. The. Things. to God! He is God, you are not. When you cling solely to Jesus, the Creator of the Universe, nothing else seems to matter. Assess what is important and spend time doing that with those you love. Your family motto encapsulates it all: Love God. Love People. Be Intentional. THAT IS IT! Simple as that. Run your race simply. Run because He has called you to it. It's hard because we can become entangled by the things that don't add anything but stress and worry to our lives. Shake it off, fix your eyes on Jesus, and all else will fall either to the wayside or into place as it should.

Enjoy life.
Continue seeing things on the bright side because that is how God made you.
Hope.

Love,
Me