A letter to my 16 year old self

I have seen several times where people write a letter to their younger selves. I have always thought it was a great idea & how I wish I would have had a letter like that when I was 16! 
I almost think it would be awesome to write a letter to yourself every 5 or 10 years and you could look back on them. 
So- Here is the letter to my 16 year old self
Enjoy! 

Dear 16 year old me,

It’s been 10 years since you were 16. In fact, you are going to be 27 in just a few months. Don’t worry, It’s not as old as you think! You cannot imagine how much life is going to change for you in these next 10 years!

I know that right now you are preparing for a huge trip overseas. (It’s been almost exactly 10 years since this trip) You are going on your 1^st mission’s trip. It’s not going to be like anything you have experienced before. You are going to see and experience things, that until you are older you won’t fully understand. Keep your eyes open, take everything in… you will feel God work in your life more than you can imagine. You will see miracles, be a part of them. You are going to lead a person to Christ. You will cry, sing, laugh, dream and learn more about yourself than you thought you would.

When you return home you can feel how you are different than you were when you left. And you will want to keep that feeling inside. There will come a time in the next few months that you chose to push that feeling down inside and change who you are.

I know its annoying hearing everyone (including) your friends say that, “You are such a goodie, you never do anything wrong.” I know that you want to feel popular & feel like people think there is some special about you. You are going to make some choices that you think will make you feel this way.

I want you to know that you are special!

You don’t have to make the wrong choices to gain friends and popularity.

You are enough!

High-school is a lot of fun for you! (You will get into some trouble & almost be caught doing some crazy stuff) You had great friends and you are leader in all you do. Work hard in school; you will not regret learning more! Don’t be afraid of trying to much or working to hard. Don’t be afraid of failing. (It’s going to happen)

I want you to know that by the time you graduate High-school, your life is going to be totally different than it was when you turned 16. You have made some really wrong choices, done things that have really put your life in jeopardy. And I know that while your reading this you can’t imagine making those choices or doing something that could hurt yourself or others… but I urge you to remember who you belong too. You Heavenly Father will not walk away from you… no matter how far you run.

There’s going to be some hard things that happen. There will be two friends who almost lose their lives and fight for it for months. You will get the call while you are in church on a Wednesday it’s going to effect your entire school. You will watch their mother in the hospital & sob sitting at her feet as she tells you how much she trusts the Lord and how she knows Gods plan is better than one she could have dreamed for them. You will lose a friend to a car accident who you grew up with and considered to be a little brother, although it had been a few years since you had spent much time with him or his family. It’s going to change how you view time. It’s going change how you deal with distance from people you love. DON’T EVER TAKE THE TIME YOU HAVE WITH PEOPLE FOR GRANTED!

You are going to stand at his funeral with a packed church of people that you are very close to 

and those who you don't know. You will sing the song "It is Well with my soul" & there will 

never be another time that that song is sung that you don't think of Jared & the strength of his family. 

There is also going to be a point where someone you trust will try and hurt you & the adults that you looked up to will not be fair. You grow from this. This makes you a better person. This makes you love more; it makes you fight more for what you want and what is right. It makes you stronger.

When you are 19, you are going to think you are in love for the 1st time. You will get your 1st real kiss & be told "I love you" from a boy. --- I promise by the end of this letter you will know all about the Love of your life! But this relationship is not it. . (God had MUCH better plans for you)

This relationship is going to teach you SO many things about yourself. You are going to learn that you deserve a man who loves everything about you, who treats you like the most important thing in his life and wants to show you that love as often as he can.

Also, remember that you don’t go into a relationship with someone who you want to change or wants to change you. I know you are going to think that your heart is broken when he ends this relationship with you…Just wait for God has in store.

You graduate college and I am not going to spill the secret of what degree you graduate with, but know that you may end up back in school a few years later! Not because you are not good at what you do, things just change. Go with it, the journey is worth it!

While you are at college you will meet the Love of your life! (I told you He was coming & you won't believe how PERFECT he is for you)There is going to be a moment the 1^st day you meet him where you joking tell two friends that you have “found your husband” and you don’t realize that you are actually looking at the man you will one day marry!

I’m telling you that when you pray for this man, God is listening. You are going to see that God created both of you for each other. Down to the smallest details... things you eat, he’s going to like all the parts you don’t! There are going to be some bumpy times but I promise it makes your love stronger! Do Not Give Up!! He loves you more than you really understand! There is not

a day that goes by that he is not on your mind & just thinking 

about him (even 6 1/2 years later) will give you butterflies. Everyday you fall in 

love with him more! 

This is as far as you have gotten. In 10 years from now you will be getting ready to get engaged, and planning a wedding and a life with someone better that you ever dreamed of. Your parents will have become your friends and things will be a lot different. God is still holding you. No matter how far you ran or how dark it got He never walked away. Remember that no matter

how hard things seem that God always has a bigger and better plan for you.

He is going to open all the right doors at all the right times. It will be hard for you 

to be patient, (heck... it's still hard for you to be patient -haha) But God has you in the palm of 

this hand! 

I challenge you to keep digging in, get to know Him better. Let God guide you. I promise his plan for your life is better than you dreamed of.

Love,

The older you

Ps- remember to Love who you are. You were fearfully & wonderfully made

I would love to read the letters you have written to your younger self!! Please leave me the link to your blog so I can check them out! 

Thank you so much for stopping by!