Dear 12 year old Me,
I want to prepare you for the challenges that you are going to be facing soon. Right now what you know isn’t what’s real. Things are going to be changing very soon. There are going to be boys pursuing you. But know this, Jesus is pursuing harder. They are going to flatter you with lies, but Jesus will speak truth. Listen for it. There are going to be friends that lure you to drink, even do drugs. But understand, Jesus is asking you to live purely. There are going to be girls you want to compete with. But I want you to know, that what they think about you doesn’t matter. Only what He thinks matters. Prepare yourself because soon you are going to be walking into a war zone of temptation and sin. But no matter how far you drift from home, He never leaves you. No matter how scared you feel, He is walking through the storm with you. When you feel the most frightened and alone, be still, because you will feel Him holding you close.
Dear 15 year old Me,
You are in a big mess. You are fighting all the wrong people. I know you are hurting. I know people have hurt you. But your rebellion is hurting yourself more than anyone else. There is a life of freedom that is calling you. A life that puts to death all the stuff you are doing. It’s a life that can be new in Jesus. You know how you feel when you are with Grandma. You know how all of the trouble you are in goes away when you are with her. Well, Jesus is using her to show you how it can be with Him. It’s not too late. You aren’t too far gone. You can run into His arms and find the same peace that you feel with her, but His peace will go with you everywhere you go. Think about it. Jesus is opening His arms to you. Now run to Him as fast as you can.
Dear 21 year old Me,
I am so proud of you. I can’t believe how much you have grown. I look at you and see so much of Jesus shining through you. Your anger is gone. Your relationships are healthier. You have cut off your ties to the world. You have better friends. You are living a holy life. But there is one thing that is so dangerous. You are still looking to fill the hole in your heart with things other than Jesus. He wants so much to be all you want and all you desire. There is no man that can fill the void, but Him. There is no man that can compete with the one who longs for you to give every piece of your heart to him. “For your Creator will be your husband; the LORD of Heaven’s Armies is his name! He is your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, the God of all the earth” (Is. 54:5).
