a letter to my future self.
as of right now you have just arrived home from a ten day trip in israel. for ten days you lived life with your mom, brother, and four of your other best friends. you ate with them, laughed with them, cried with them, prayed with them, and learned with them. before this journey people told you that your understanding of Jesus’ sacrifice and friendships would grow deeper- but little did you know just how deep. in fact, leaving the airport was harder than you thought it would be because of how used you had become to being with those people every second of the day. the trip was only ten days, but those ten days transformed those you called friends into those you called siblings in a way you didn’t even know was possible.
so i am writing this to you, my future self, reminding you to treasure every little moment with the people who are strangers to me now but to you will be family. the people who i haven’t even met yet but to you are the people you eat with, laugh with, cry with, pray with, and learn with on a daily basis. i have spent only ten days doing this with six of my favorite people on the planet and it’s weird thinking that the next time i eat a meal we won’t all be together- i can’t even imagine how weird it’ll be after nine months of the same thing. so future self, i’m praying that you love hard because goodbyes come quicker than you think (something i’m sure you know full well haha). i’m praying that you cherish every moment through thick and thin because these are the things and the people you’ll look back on and thank God for. i’m praying that you don’t let homesickness or excitement of the future distract you from living fully in the season where God has placed you. i’m praying that you remember God is the one who gives and takes in His perfect timing- always leading you through experiences purposed for you to draw closer to Him.
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if there is one thing God has shown me recently it is how important it is to love well because goodbyes are so common. in 114 days i say goodbye to all the people i love
more than words can say and start a journey with a group of random strangers. in 380 days i will say goodbye to those strangers who became my family and say hello to the people i left behind. time flies future self, so love hard.
xo,
shek // may 17, 2018
