Two weeks ago we welcomed another child into our home, she's 17, and she stole my heart a long time before she had a bed in my home...this letter is for her...
To my daughter,
I do not pick my words lightly. God has woven your story into my story and I am forever grateful and forever changed because of our relationship. I know that I didn't birth you, didn't raise you, and only have three years under my belt at loving you but I want you to know that I loved you the moment you walked through my doors. But what I thought was love then is so much deeper than any words could ever express today. Every path and part of your story that we have been on since then has made this moment in time where we are at so much sweeter. I don't take it lightly the pain you have endured or the moments that have made up your journey up to this point. There are really painful moments in your journey that are burned into my memory forever but they no longer make me sad for you they make me incredibly proud of you. You have let God take so much brokenness and make it beautiful. You are one of the most incredible young women I have ever met and I am proud to know you. I see your tender heart and it makes me want to wrap my arms around you and nurture you. I want you to know that these arms will be here to hold you on the good days and on the hard days when the world has been unfair or unloving. I am here to listen, to love, to be a sounding board, and to encourage you to continue to fight. I want you to know that I see your beauty- I see your smile, your eyes the way they lights up and I find myself praying for the man that will be your husband. I pray that he will love you well. He will speak your love language. I pray that he will treat you in every way that you deserve but have yet to experience. I pray that he will be a man of God that will lead you into a deeper relationship with Christ. I pray that he would nurture you, protect you, and love you selflessly. I see your servants heart and how you love others and I am proud to know you. I see how tender your heart is when you love and I know that God is going to use that as you grow to love others, to be an excellent wife, and an amazing mom, and follower of Jesus. You are so special, I hope you know that. They don't make people like you- people that have endured the things you have endured and can still come through the trenches and see the glass as half full and still have a child like heart. You are a fighter and stronger than most of the people I have met. Thanks for not giving up when it gets hard! Your courage you have showed me over the last threenyears and even more so these past 4 months is a force to be reckoned with. Thanks for letting me love you, I love that loving you is part of my daily life...I am better for getting to love you. I thank you for trusting me on this journey- trusting me and all the people I throw at you. :) Thanks for letting them be a part of your journey too. I am here for the fun- the countless nexflix hours we will take part in, the laughing, shopping, the arts and crafts, the cooking, the coffee...it is all so much fun! I am also here for the pain- when girls are hateful, when people treat you in a way you don't deserve to be treated, when a boy is dumb and breaks your heart, or when you are just exhausted from your journey I am here to rock you (literally) or just hug you and listen to the pain of it all. I want you to know that I am not going anywhere- that I am in this for the long haul- you get me for better or worse from this day forward ( I feel like I made this vow in my heart to you a long time ago-but if you in't know it-I'm telling you today)...I am confident you didn't know you were walking into all of this when I met you for the first time and in all fairness I didn't know that I was getting all of this either but I wouldn't trade it for the world. Thanks for being in my home, teaching me how to love, and adding another level of joy to our home. We are blessed and can't imagine our life without you.
We love you!
I do not pick my words lightly. God has woven your story into my story and I am forever grateful and forever changed because of our relationship. I know that I didn't birth you, didn't raise you, and only have three years under my belt at loving you but I want you to know that I loved you the moment you walked through my doors. But what I thought was love then is so much deeper than any words could ever express today. Every path and part of your story that we have been on since then has made this moment in time where we are at so much sweeter. I don't take it lightly the pain you have endured or the moments that have made up your journey up to this point. There are really painful moments in your journey that are burned into my memory forever but they no longer make me sad for you they make me incredibly proud of you. You have let God take so much brokenness and make it beautiful. You are one of the most incredible young women I have ever met and I am proud to know you. I see your tender heart and it makes me want to wrap my arms around you and nurture you. I want you to know that these arms will be here to hold you on the good days and on the hard days when the world has been unfair or unloving. I am here to listen, to love, to be a sounding board, and to encourage you to continue to fight. I want you to know that I see your beauty- I see your smile, your eyes the way they lights up and I find myself praying for the man that will be your husband. I pray that he will love you well. He will speak your love language. I pray that he will treat you in every way that you deserve but have yet to experience. I pray that he will be a man of God that will lead you into a deeper relationship with Christ. I pray that he would nurture you, protect you, and love you selflessly. I see your servants heart and how you love others and I am proud to know you. I see how tender your heart is when you love and I know that God is going to use that as you grow to love others, to be an excellent wife, and an amazing mom, and follower of Jesus. You are so special, I hope you know that. They don't make people like you- people that have endured the things you have endured and can still come through the trenches and see the glass as half full and still have a child like heart. You are a fighter and stronger than most of the people I have met. Thanks for not giving up when it gets hard! Your courage you have showed me over the last threenyears and even more so these past 4 months is a force to be reckoned with. Thanks for letting me love you, I love that loving you is part of my daily life...I am better for getting to love you. I thank you for trusting me on this journey- trusting me and all the people I throw at you. :) Thanks for letting them be a part of your journey too. I am here for the fun- the countless nexflix hours we will take part in, the laughing, shopping, the arts and crafts, the cooking, the coffee...it is all so much fun! I am also here for the pain- when girls are hateful, when people treat you in a way you don't deserve to be treated, when a boy is dumb and breaks your heart, or when you are just exhausted from your journey I am here to rock you (literally) or just hug you and listen to the pain of it all. I want you to know that I am not going anywhere- that I am in this for the long haul- you get me for better or worse from this day forward ( I feel like I made this vow in my heart to you a long time ago-but if you in't know it-I'm telling you today)...I am confident you didn't know you were walking into all of this when I met you for the first time and in all fairness I didn't know that I was getting all of this either but I wouldn't trade it for the world. Thanks for being in my home, teaching me how to love, and adding another level of joy to our home. We are blessed and can't imagine our life without you.
We love you!
