A Letter to Me

Dear Joy,

First off, I want you to know that I love you.  Though I don’t express it well, though I don’t say it often, and though I don’t think you’ll accept it as true, I know somewhere deep in the heart of Texas…..er….I mean, deep in my heart, I really do love you.  I’ve known you for years now, and look how far you have come!  Texas, New England, Canada.  I always knew you had potential to be a missionary, and I always did consider you more of a North American girl when it came to a potential mission field.  I think New England has been a beautiful fit for you.  Now bloom where you are planted, my dear!

God has great plans for you.  I know you can’t see it right now.  I know the future looks both daunting and confusing.  I know right now, it’s hard to predict what lies ahead, and it’s even harder to interpret what has already come to pass.  I know you thrive on introspection.  I see you lost in thought, having another conversation with yourself.  I look forward to the moment when you are finally able to write it all down for the world, or at least, for me to see.  Your writing is certainly your hearts language, so continue to pour that out and maybe even let the world see it.  People really can relate to you if you just let them in.

Lately we’ve been talking a lot about who you are…innately.  The real you……..dearest Joy……..I hope more of the world gets to see the real you soon.  Your considerate heart, longing to reach the wall flower much like you, brings light into the dark corners.  Your heart to share and meet others needs draws you sometimes out of bounds in enablement, but please do not lose that heart to serve and give.  Your desire to meet everyone where they are at can sometimes seem like you are wearing a mask to be accepted, but I urge you, please reach out but be transparent.  Your detail oriented mind takes abundant notes and tries to draw up a plan of action on how to build/maintain relationships with others, and though that considerateness proves well in good conversation, not offending others, and seemingly superficial friendships, I beg of you, not to confuse being a doormat for others to walk all over with being truly humble (Philippians 2:2-4).

Also, thank you for your service with those students of yours.  I understand how your job is both entertaining as well as grueling….encouraging and yet depressing.  God has called you to work with and invest in a boatload of teenagers…..it’s a HUGE job so don’t take it as a failure if you come home crying and don’t you dare try to tackle it alone! You can’t do it on your own, Joy….I know you are strong and I know you think you can, but sweetie, you simply can’t…..and God didn’t call you to anyway, so drop the cape and get back on your knees, my dear.  That’s where the real battle will be fought.  Oh, and stop trying to be everyone’s favorite…that, in fact, is not a battle worth fighting or winning. 

I know right now, you feel in flux.  You are 26 years old but feeling rather young to be an adult.  Those typical milestones of life that most of your friends are currently experiencing are absent in your life…things like having your own place, a boyfriend, a fiancé, a husband, children of your own….none of those exist in your life, but that’s ok.  Focus on what God currently has before you and pour in, my dear.  Pour in to those students, pour in to that staff, pour in to that church, pour in to those friends and families, pour in to your own blood family, pour in, Pour In, POUR IN, because there is so much you have to give!

I love you, don’t forget,

In Christ,

Joy Lynn

Letter written after watching: http://www.godvine.com/If-You-ve-Ever-Felt-Bad-About-Yourself-This-is-a-Video-You-Should-See--4476.html