Note: I wrote this letter to myself in much earlier days of this blog, but never published it. I just came across it again today and felt it was time to share it with the world. Although it emerged in the midst of much personal wrestling and prayer, I hope it strikes a chord of resonance with you as well. 

Dear you –

The one who is tired,

the one who sits there staring out the bus window,

wondering if she’s the one who has it all wrong.

The one who recognizes in herself the same criticism

the same jumping to conclusions

the same line-in-the-sand mentality

that frustrates her in others

and wonders how we ever heal from it all.

You’re the one who wrestles over

how to be angry over evil and injustice

and yet not let that anger corrode your hope;

how to honor another’s experiences

and yet stand your ground;

how to humbly admit your ignorance and confusion

when it seems like all everyone wants is certainty.

You wonder

why we all still seem to be grasping for a place to belong.

Today, you need to know

That a great life is not defined by getting everything right;

That your opinions are only worth as much as the way they change your life;

And that continuing the wobbly dance of hope and vulnerability is valuable precisely because of how fragile it can be.

In the midst of your anger and your imperfections – you belong.

In the midst of your criticism and your confusion – you belong.

You belong because there is One who knows you would never get it all right – so He did.

Throw open the window and welcome in the changing winds as they come and go.

You can be the sparrow song

that welcomes others home.