A Letter to My Younger Self by Sandra Rafuse

Dear Sandra, 

I am thinking of you right now. I am thinking of all the years you will spend living in the world while you are also of the world with no knowledge of what either word really means. Oh, the wonderful sales you will find, the endless knickknacks you will accumulate, the delight you will take in shopping for hours to find bargains on items you don't need, all so they can sit in your closets and on your cupboard shelves and you can look at them and think, they are mine, mine, mine! You won't recognize the selfishness and greed that was in you then. It won't be until you accept Christ as your Lord and Saviour that your mind and eyes will be opened and you will understand and see. 

When you accept Christ, the Holy Spirit will come to live in your heart. He will be your teacher and he will help you grow in getting to know Jesus Christ. You will learn to trust him. What a difference he will make in your life! The desire to buy and accumulate possessions will begin to fade and fall away. You will realize when walking in a mall, that while you will still notice the FOR SALE signs everywhere (you might even walk over and take a look at the offerings), the impulse to purchase them will no longer be there. The words thank you, God, will rise up in you time and time again. Thank you, God, for setting me free.

Then there will come a day when you will say to the Lord, "Show me what I was like," and you will mean it. You will want to know what kind of person you had been all those years before you accepted Christ. What you had said or not said, what you had done or not done, who you had helped or not helped, you wanted to see what God had seen. And he will respond to your request: he will show you what you wanted to know. Maybe not immediately, but soon enough. 

You will be walking down the street and suddenly you will remember a time when you said some unkind words to a friend and your heart will suddenly feel cold and you will say to the Lord, "I said that?"

You will be driving somewhere and the memory of an occasion when you had been selfish or critical or judgmental of others will fill you with regret and you will say to God, "I was like that?" 

You will be hiking along a dirt road and you will stop dead in your tracks. Tears will start gathering in the corners of your eyes because God will have shown you something you have always been ashamed of, something you've always wished had never happened, and you will sorrowfully say, "Forgive me, Lord. Please forgive me." "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9 NIV)

And because God is always gracious and kind, he will forgive you. He will let you see what kind of person you had been but he will also remind you that you are a new creation in Christ and you will remember that you have been washed clean of your sins and you are entirely new.  "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" (2 Cor 5:17 NIV)

Sandra, the years of living in the world and being of the world will be many. When you finally do not belong to the world, you will belong to God. Seek him with all your heart. 

There will be several years where you will not have enough contact with your immediate family. Reach out to them. Accept them as they are. 

"Go often to the house of thy friend, for weeds choke the unused path." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson   Treasure your friends. Go and visit them. You need each other.   

There will be difficult times as you enter your later retirement years. When they come, and as they are there, remember God's words to you. "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." (Isaiah 41:10 NIV)

Blessings on you, my dear.

 

Sandra Rafuse lives in the small town of Rockglen, Saskatchewan, with her husband, Bob, a Gordon Setter named Sadie, and a Peregrine Falcon named Peet. She is a retired elementary school teacher, an amateur writer and is thoroughly enjoying having the opportunity to share what God has been teaching her through her life experiences.

 

    

 (Top) Image by Anisur Rahman on Subsplash

A Letter to My Future Self by Gloria Guest

The first questions I have when I think of you: Who are you now? How old you are? How are you feeling? Are you happy?

Happiness is elusive though and your present and past selves have certainly learned that. It comes and goes based on life circumstances, unlike joy that remains deep inside in spite of them. My present and past selves are no expert on joy either though…I’ve had it at times…but I’ve struggled so much to hold onto it.

But let’s stick with you…my future self. You too seem elusive. Why then do I choose to write to you? Maybe because I’ve written a lot about my younger self and some about my present, but never about you, my future. Setting goals has never been my strong suit but if I’m to connect with you, from the place I sit in the present, I sort of need to set some. How else can I even begin to imagine who you might be? Or help you be who you want to be? Sandi Somers's post, writing about how she wrote to her future self, and asking herself some key questions, was a big help to me. I’ve attempted to answer those questions myself. Thanks Sandi.

‘What would I attempt if I were sure the Lord were with me infusing me with wisdom, love courage and strength?’ Big question. Short answer is that I would attempt to finish that memoir that has been hanging around in my life since around 2005.

‘What obstacles seem to be standing in my way?’ Well that’s easy. It’s me. My fear specifically. And the specific things I need for God to give me beyond the courage and wisdom that Sandi mentions to help me, is less of me and more of Him.

The steps I need to take? Oh right. There are steps. This is where I stumble. I look too far ahead. Fear of what others will ‘think’ of me. Fear of how family will respond. Fear is likely my first big step I have stumbled on over and over again. My memoir is a complicated story of family dysfunction and abuse, festering wounds that led to my mother’s early death and a sister's suicide; a lifelong difficult journey of healing for myself. It’s not comfortable but still a story I think needs telling. Some voices do not quiet down until they are told. I had no voice as a child and my sister didn’t either.

Here in my memoir I attempt to blend her voice with mine and God's redeeming love with the painful fact that some things aren’t fixed this side of heaven. Back to the steps though…

-One day at a time….I can write for ‘now’ without thinking about the ‘future’. Someday perhaps the now will meet up the future when I ever get it published. Focus on the now.

-Schedule a writing time for just ‘memoir’ writing preferably once a week. If I can’t write on my memoir I can journal.

-Journal every day. That is where the best ‘stuff’ of memoir comes from; free flowing thought even if it’s from other places and happenings.

-Prayer. This memoir will never happen without prayer, and I have lacked in that department. Perhaps I think that if I don’t pray, I won’t have to do it. But God’s promptings to write are steadfast. I need to pray. And perhaps have others pray with me. Spiritual warfare as our family has found out in the last couple of years is very real.

‘How is the Lord prompting me now to step out in risk?’ This very letter has been the prompt I needed. In the past few years I’ve slipped back into depression and have allowed a lot of my motivation to slide downhill. I’ve read and learned much about depression in my past and understand just how complicated it is, with no easy answers. Yet sometimes I read something that connects with where ‘I’ am at and believe to be true about ‘me’. One thing I read was when we aren’t living true to our self and aligning with the purposes that God has placed on our hearts, depression often then comes in the door. That rings true for me in this time and in this place….

So dear future self; as you’ve stepped forward into the purpose that you believed God has set before you, you were not alone. Every battle you have fought in your past has produced a strength and resilience in you that drew on to write what you were called to. In my present I smile to think of you lowering your pen deep into the ink well of God’s grace and mercy; laying by the green pastures and still waters He has prepared for you as you write the tough stuff that has forged you into who you are. You lean heavily on your Shepherd who you understand now has many times left the one hundred to find you; clinging to the side of a cliff or deep in a hole; but He’s always found you and brought you back. I believe you understand more than you do now how He loves you with a Father’s love. You are His and He alone carries you now, your present, and your past yet.

“His mercies are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:23)

Gloria writes from a small prairie town in southern Saskatchewan; coming full circle back to her husband's home town where they farmed for many years. She refers to herself as a bit of gypsy due to her many moves to various towns, cities, and provinces throughout her lifetime and draws from those varied places and experiences heavily in not only her memoir writing but other genres too. She loves the prairie crocus and sunsets and sunrises, the grandeur of the northern Alberta forest, the charm and quaintness and beautiful rivers of her southern Ontario roots.

Dear Twenty-Year-old Me by Mary Folkerts

 

Dear Almost-20-year-old me,

Oh girl, if only this were possible. That fifty-some year-old me could go back in time to share some advice and encouragement with you. After the initial shock of how we’ve aged, I hope you'll hear my words and take them to heart.

🌸

Girl, you are loved! Don’t be so concerned about people’s opinions of you! Embrace your uniqueness and be you. You don’t need to be like the girls in the magazines or the best friend who is outgoing and has all the friends. Be you. And be confident that the One who made you created you precisely as you are for a purpose! His eye was on you from conception, and He sees you. He knows all the bumps and bruises and loves you fiercely. Learn to trust God's love!

🌸

Don’t be self-centered. Think of yourself less (NOT think less of yourself). Learn early to give a helping hand without an incentive.

🌸

The counseling you attempt to sit through and don’t apply yourself to? Do it. Do the hard work of understanding yourself, and when you are my age, you will thank me! Don’t be so consumed with “oh, I’m the only broken one. No one wants someone with so many issues that needs counseling”. Everyone has broken pieces, girl; we’re just all broken differently. The benefits of speaking through and untangling life's knots are immeasurable. Get the tools you will need to help you navigate your way through the ups and downs.

🌸

Shame and guilt are two different things. Guilt is “I did something bad,” and God forgives and restores you from that. Shame is “I am bad”, and this thought is not from God. It’s a lie that will ensnare you and keep you stuck in self-deprecation.

🌸

That advice that the older, more experienced friend gives you? Don’t shrug it off as if you know better. You could save yourself a lot of heartache if you take heed!

🌸

I hate to say this part, but here it comes. You think that once you’ve found the man of your dreams, once you’ve settled down into marriage, that life will be complete. Don’t be fooled. There will always be “the next thing” you add to your “if only” list. Learn to enjoy life now! You know that saying, that someday TODAY will be the day you look back on fondly? It’s true. Be in the now. Don’t think that life will be better when—(Side note: the man of your dreams? It turns out that dreams change, and what you thought you wanted won’t be as important as what God knew you needed).

🌸

Nothing will ever be perfect. Perfection is highly overrated and unattainable. It will, in fact, derail you if you keep those tendencies up. Allow yourself to learn how to say, “I did my best, and that’s good enough.”

🌸

Grow your faith. Build a solid foundation underneath you. Know what you believe, and surround yourself with friends who will help you stand firm. You will need it as you get older. I don’t want to spoil all the surprises for you, but there will be things that come that will shake you to the core. Learn early to trust in the God who knows everything about you and still loves you completely.

🌸 

Endings are painful, but they can become new beginnings if you turn them on their head. Perspective is key!

🌸

Life doesn’t have to be easy to be good. Difficulties in life are the rule, not the exception. God never said that He would give you a life without trouble, but He did say He would be with you THROUGH the trouble. Make sure you walk with Him when the sun shines, so you don’t have to frantically search for Him when it rains.

🌸

Don’t feel obligated to dwell on every thought that passes through your mind. You will find that the negative, untrue thoughts will lead you down a sad road. Train your brain early to do what the Bible says, “Be careful what you think, because your thoughts run your life.” (Proverbs 4:23 NCV)

🌸

Good habits are good, and bad ones are hard to break. Begin now! There will come a day when you wish you had made more effort to develop the good ones and to break the bad ones.

🌸

Don’t waste your time. Time becomes more precious the older you get. Value it, use it well.

🌸

And one more thing—
Use sunscreen on your face,
and oh—
easy on those potato chips.

Love your more experienced, more mature, still learning, still stumbling, but grateful fifty-some-year-old self.

Mary Folkerts is mom to four kids and wife to a farmer, living on the southern prairies of Alberta, where the skies are large and the sunsets stunning. She is a member of Proverbs 31 Ministries' COMPEL Writers Training, involved in church ministries and music. Mary’s blog aims to encourage and inspire women and advocate for those with Down Syndrome, as their youngest child introduced them to this extraordinary new world. For more inspiration, check out Joy in the Small Things https://maryfolkerts.com/ or connect on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/maryfolkerts/

Dear Brenda by Brenda J Wood

Dear Brenda,

There she is! The same name as me! The same colour 
hair as me!

The same middle initial as me! The same weight as me
and even the same birthday month as me.

She must be me! We both write and we both publish.

We both read the same type of books! We both want to
lose twenty pounds!

She must be me! We are both widows. We lived in the
same area! Surely, she is me!

But she is not me.

She is the me who fantasied about losing twenty pounds
and living

with perfect children and a doting husband. Those days
are past…well except for the

warm climate which never did. (Oops, and that twenty-
pound thing!)

Instead, my husband died and the children have flown the
coop.

That Brenda has to make it on her own now and she does.

But that other elusive Brenda? She lives in the Azores.
She found me

because of something I wrote twenty-five or thirty years
ago. Everything I said about

her is true! We are like twins in so many ways. And this is
how she found me.

Like many others, I wrote for the devotional page
PresbyCan.ca, from May 25, 1996, to March 31, 2025.

Eventually editor Robin Ross organized those 10,441
devotionals into a low-maintenance project.

Now five writings appear daily in our mail boxes.

We still comment, enter our prayers and more but the
writings are all oldies, but goodies.

My other Brenda found me because of a certain
devotional.

I searched it by my name and date of the piece.
Immediately it popped up.

I am writing all this to tell you to be careful what you put
out online. It never goes away.

It is still there. Make it a good one! Nothing lasts forever?
Don’t kid yourself.

from Brenda

(Top) Image by Ron Lach on Pexels

Brenda J Wood has authored more than fifty books. She is a seasoned motivational speaker, who declares the Word of God with wisdom, humour, and common sense.

Gonna Write Myself a Letter by Sharon Heagy

Dear Sharon,

What a challenge to write this letter. When you think of the past, your autopilot goes to the mistakes you've made and the 'woulda, shoulda, coulda' moments that may have changed the direction for your life and the lives of others. For some reason you must choose to ponder the abundance of blessed days of your existence, and there are many. Even the grand errors of your life are filled with "good and perfect gifts" (James 1:17) and led to the most amazing one of all - the grace, mercy and agape love of God.

If you think of the future, you realize your rope is getting shorter and you no longer entertain the illusion of youth that assures you will live to a ripe old age. There are no guarantees for anyone. Yet that realization fills your heart with thanksgiving for the years and adventures you've had. The course of the life you are living today can change in an instant.

(Well, Sharon, so far this letter is not a letter of encouragement. What else have you got?)

What else have you got? You have today. This moment in time. This precious, remarkable, exquisite moment. Turn it over in your hands and see it glow. Appreciate its brevity and fragility like a soap bubble resting in your palm for one brief nanosecond. Are you going to waste it? There will be another won't there? Another and another, all popping into your life like popcorn in a pot. Slowly they start pop.....pop....pop. Then suddenly they are popping like crazy! Popopopopopopopop until just as suddenly they are gone.

Treasure the moments, but don't hoard them. They don't belong to you. They belong to Him. Seek His wisdom and use them wisely. This life is not all about you. It's about Him, it's about others and then it's about you. We are all in this together, in that order - first, second, third. At least that is what I think you should strive for in all the moments you have left, however many that will be and however quickly they will pass. As John Wesley said,

"Do all the good you can,

By all the means you can,

In all the ways you can,

In all the places you can,

At all the times you can,

To all the people you can,

As long as ever you can."

Discover the miracle of God's creation in each person you meet. They are "fearfully and wonderfully made." (Psalm 139:14) Witness the beauty of a sunrise and let the crashing waves of the ocean take your breath away. Listen to the whisper of wheat waving in a field of grain. Let your heart warm and giggle as you hear the laughter of children, new life. "Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn." (Romans 12:15) Embrace the sacredness of silence. Seek the awesomeness of God in every day. Be obedient to His beckoning voice.

Print out this letter, Sharon, to read for the next few days then store it away in a place you are sure to discover later. Soak in these directions until you are overflowing with grace into the lives of others. Building, encouraging, nurturing. Sharing the love He has so freely given to you. Share through written word or physical deed. Through prayer and supplication. In any way His limitless creative way chooses. This is what you have. As the Gaither song says, 'We Have This Moment, Today.' (YouTube link here)

With love,
Sharon

Sharon Heagy writes from the wonderful town of Rockglen, Saskatchewan where she lives with her husband a big dog and furry cats. Their kids have flown the coop and made lives for themselves and their families, as it should be. She writes to bring hope and humour to a world that needs both. She can be reached @ sharonheagy@gmail.com Thanks for taking the time to visit today.

 

Letter to My Younger Self by Dana-Lyn Phillips

Being a teenager is hard but it’s not going to last forever. In fact, your high school years will be over in the blink of an eye. Soon you will be making big life decisions so for now, just relax and enjoy the ride. Focus on friendships, and relationship building, because one of these friends will be with you for life. (Spoiler Alert: It’s not the cute boy from History class that you will pine over for four years.)

Don’t be self-absorbed and fail to look around you. Notice that your friends, who are doing all of those things you refuse to do, are just crying out for attention because they come from unstable families. Some, through the dark of night, and behind closed doors, are actually going through the unimaginable.

Although your family has challenges of its own, with a handicapped father and a mother who needs to work long hours to provide for her family, you are loved. Your family is emotionally healthy and your friends sense it. They gravitate towards your home. Open the doors and let them in. I know that because you are an only child, sharing is difficult, but you can share your parents because they have enough love to go around.

Before you know it you will be applying to college. You’ll be a step ahead since you have known, for years, exactly what you wanted to be and your high school courses have all been planned accordingly. Your grades won’t be stellar but you’ve got this. Don’t let your co-op advisor deter you, or make you feel like you’re not good enough. He may think you need to be a man to be an Architect, but show him he’s wrong.

I would suggest that when you apply to college - DON’T JUST APPLY TO ONE! Apply to a few so that if (rather when) you don’t get into your first choice you have options. Don’t be discouraged, know that God has a better plan than the one you imagine. Just go with the flow.

Fast forward…

As you turn thirty years old you will look back over the previous ten years and recognize they did not go according to your plans. Yes, you graduate but the economy ruins your dreams of continuing in architecture. You return to school multiple times striving toward new dreams but all of those programs and diplomas will fall short. They will end up being a waste of time and money. They certainly won’t bring you the joy you’re looking for.

You’ll gain stable employment but non-profit wages won’t sustain you long-term. You will eventually stop focusing on your career and begin to focus on the only true dream you have for this lifetime — a husband, who puts the Lord first, and at least two children (because you know what being an only child is like). Don’t give up on this dream but be patient as it won’t happen as early as you would like it to.

You have a habit of never just enjoying where you are. You’re always focused on the next thing you want out of life. As you date, you will be focused on marriage. Once married, you will long for children. Once the kids come, you will watch over them as they sleep, wondering how you’re ever going to make it through and be a good mom. Trust me, it all works out in the end and you end up with a couple of amazing kids.

Eventually, you will reflect on life lived and accept that it didn’t end up the way you imagined it would. You’ll realize, it turned out better. There is One who has bigger and better dreams for you, and He has a way of working things out according to His purposes for your life.

In fact, what would you think if I told you that one day…you will be a writer?

 

Dana-Lyn is a wife, and mother to teenage boys as well as a 14-year-old cava-poo named Hockley. She is passionate about encouraging Christian women in their faith and is stepping into her mid-life "calling" as a writer. Her happy place consists of a comfy chair, a great book, a hot cup of coffee and a chocolate…or three! You can read more of her work at https://plansfargreater.substack.com

A Letter to 16-Year-Old Me by Susan Barclay

 

Dear Sixteen-Year-Old Me,

You thought you would go to Sweden on your own this year. Ha! You’ll be fortunate if you get there before you’re too old to go. But put your mind at ease: 16 is far too young to go hotfooting around the globe on your own. And one day you’ll have a son who’s interested in Sweden, too. Maybe you’ll go together!

You also thought you’d be married by the time you’re 23. Nope. You won’t even seriously date until you’re almost 25. And then you’ll waste time on a commitment-phobe. Afterwards you’ll tell yourself, and you won’t be wrong, that no time is wasted if you learn something. You do learn something: never pass yourself off as someone you’re not to try to fit someone else’s mould. Even if you’re not perfect (see next paragraph), yourself is actually pretty great. God made you, right? He doesn’t make junk.

You know what else? Twenty three is pretty young to get married. It won’t seem so as you watch many of your peers marry sooner than you do. But comparison is the thief of joy, peace, and contentment. If I could give you a timely word of advice, I’d say don’t play that game. When you marry, you’ll choose someone who shares your beliefs and values, who’ll stick with you through all the ups and downs. He won’t be perfect. Big secret, neither are you (despite being pretty great – see above). It’ll be worth the wait to have a God-fearing person with whom to do life.

You’re already working in a library and that’s where you’ll spend your career. You’ll never lose your love of reading, acquiring books, and doing readers’ advisory. It’s parallel to the work you really want to do as a writer but it’s stable and more readily pays the bills. Sadly, you won’t develop good writing habits while you’re young and carry them throughout the busy life headed your way, but it’s never too late to start, or to start over. That applies to many things, not only to writing.

You’ll have two children, a girl and a boy. You’ll love and raise them as best as you know how. They’ll both walk away from God and the foundation you’ll raise them on. Don’t worry, though. Their salvation never depended on you. It’s the Holy Spirit’s job. Their journeys are their own. Those journeys will be a lot more mind-blowing than yours, but He’s got them just like He has you. He is faithful. You’ll learn to depend on Him and you’ll grow in Him. You’ll find He’s right there in the fire with you. He’s working, even when you cannot see. I have seen my faith made sight, so I know that this is true. He never stops working.

You’ll question some of the decisions you'll make, whether different choices would’ve produced different (better) results. Remember that hindsight is 20-20. Let go of regret and wishful thinking. You’re not one to rashly follow a path. You’ll do your homework; sometimes you’ll remember to pray about it. God won’t always make everything perfectly clear and you’ll go in a direction perhaps you shouldn’t have. Life is full of ups and downs. God gave you a free will and knew the decisions you would make. He works ALL things together for your good because you love Him and are called according to His purposes (ref Romans 8:28). He loves you and accepts you.

God loves you unconditionally, just like He loves everyone, but only those who receive Jesus get to spend eternity with Him. You’ve accepted Jesus already, even though at 16 you don’t have a complete understanding of what that means. You’ll understand it better by and by. The process of sanctification (transformation) takes a lifetime and that’s okay. That’s how God designed it. Receive His forgiveness for your mistakes and forgive yourself, too. Trust Him always. Cling to Him in times of trouble. He will see you through, and one day He will walk you Home.

Love,

Your older and wiser self

_____________________

For more about Susan and her writing, please visit www.susan-barclay.blogspot.com

To My Younger Self by Alan Anderson

 

I don’t have an abundance of fond memories of my childhood. Years would crawl by before I realized God was not a Great Tormentor in the sky. My imagination allowed me to create adventures to escape and run away from certain moments in life. Glory to God, I came to be aware of the gift and beauty of life, including my life.


Dear Alan,

Your early years in Scotland revealed your shyness, self-doubt, and a desire to escape those with loud voices. In time you would learn to use your imagination through writing to turn away your fears. You also turned to people who helped shape the man you would become.

Standout Memories

Do you remember when you were seven or eight years old, there was an upset at home, and you wanted to run away? You ran out of the house, not knowing where you would run to, then realized something else. The weather was stormy, and thunderclaps scared you. You thought the thunder was God being angry with you for running away.

When you finally went back home, no one realized you had left. Your family thought you had just gone outside for a while. This caused you to think you did not matter. Mum, however, did notice and consoled you as only she could.

Remember the old man from our neighbourhood who took his own life. His death was too much for you to process. When you asked Mum why he did such a thing, she said amid her own sadness that, “he was lonely.” You will never forget her sorrowful words nor the old man’s death. As you grow in years and mature in life, the old man will be your role model for people who suffer. Mum will be your role model for compassion.

Another impactful memory is your unending love for a teacher named Miss Gordon. Miss Gordon let you know you mattered, and she took the time to encourage you in your schooling. You will write about her when you get older to let people know of her beautiful compassion. 

https://inscribewritersonline.blogspot.com/2015/09/miss-gordon-oh-how-i-loved-you-by-alan.html

A delightful memory planted forever in your soul is of you and one of your brothers wandering in a field near the Grampian Mountains in Scotland. You walked through a field covered with purple heather and fragrant flowers. This gave you such pleasure and a time for you to rest your mind from your inner turmoil. You saw and felt God’s creation and realized His love. This allowed you to breathe in a calmness you had never found before.

Words of encouragement as you grow older

As years go by and you become a man, your love of quiet places will be one of your strengths. You will never lose your practice of embracing nature, God’s creation. As you get older, you will continue to thank God when the trees you walk by seem to embrace you. You will also love solitude and places that allow you to sit in peace and write.

As decades go by, you will develop your writer’s voice. Write well and often, even when health challenges settle on you as you reach your older years. Never compromise your voice for the sake of popularity or wealth as the world sees it. Remember Mum, Miss Gordon, and the old man, for they were the seeds of your writing and compassionate words.

Keep in mind the heart and actions of the Lord Jesus:

“When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36 NIV)

Alan, for as long as you can show this compassion in how you live and through the words you write.

 

Alan lives in a small village called Deroche, British Columbia, with his wife, Terry, and their poodle, Charlie. He enjoys walking on the dike near his home, with trees all around and where he finds inspiration to write. He has occasionally written articles for FellowScript Magazine and is a regular contributor to the InScribe Christian Writers’ Fellowship blog. Alan’s website and blog is https://scarredjoy.ca. He has also begun to write on Substack.

A Letter to My Younger Self by Steph Beth Nickel

Dear 20-Something Self,

Some things we can’t learn without experiencing them. So, while there is lots I’d love to encourage you to change, lessons I’d love for you to learn sooner, we likely wouldn’t be here, just a couple of months before our 65^th birthday.

And just where is here?

After 40+ years in the same city, Dave and I are packing and prepping the house to put on the market. Joshua, Son #2, and his wife, Ericka, (yep, we’re a mother-in-law twice over) live two provinces over. Sarah, Kiddo #3, moved in with them last fall. She hopes to buy a place of her own when she has saved up enough for a downpayment. And our plan, Lord willing, is for Dave and I to move west after the house sells.

That will be a huge adventure, considering we’ve never lived out of the province. While we’re excited, the thought of leaving behind family and friends will become more emotionally charged as the date approaches. Several people have said how much they don’t want us to go, some who have known us for years and others we’ve befriended more recently.

Last year, Dave finally retired from his “temporary” job at the Housing Corporation, where he worked for over 40 years. (The Lord never opened the doors to full-time music ministry as we’d anticipated.) Nathanial came home from Scotland to celebrate his dad’s retirement and his 70^th b-day. (Sadly, N’s wife, Laura, couldn’t take the time off work.) Joshua and Ericka also joined us. And Sarah was still living at home at this point.

While all this happened just last year, it seems like it was much longer ago. What doesn’t seem that long ago is the adventure Dave and I shared with Nathanial and Laura in 2024. We travelled to Iceland with them and toured Scotland, where they live. Nathanial also took Dave and I to Ireland for five days toward the end of our time across the Pond.

So, all that to say…

Our life has been a sequence of adventures. And hopefully, there are several more yet to come.

You, my 20-something self, have challenging days ahead. You’ll make mistakes you’d love to erase. Words—lots of words—you’d love not to have said. Accusations you’ll wish you’d never made. Lessons you’d love to have learned much earlier. Opportunities you’ll grab hold of and others that will slip through your fingers. And a battle with anger that only the Lord could deliver you from.

But know this…

Romans 8:28 is true. God truly works all things together for good.

His mercy and grace are unfathomable.

And His blessings… Innumerable.

Trust the Lord. Grow in your love for Him. And grow in your love for those whose paths cross yours.

Embrace the adventure that is your life!

Steph Beth Nickel is the former Editor of FellowScript and the current InScribe Contest Coordinator. Steph is an editor and author and plans to relocate to Saskatchewan from Ontario to be close to family in 2027. (Headshot Photo Credit: Jaime Mellor Photography)

Time Capsule: A Letter to My Future Self by Sandi Somers

February 12, 2026

To my future self in December 2026,

I have a special Christmas card and letter for you to open in December, 2026. It’s sealed like a time capsule and is my gift to you—a review of your year.

I’ll give you the background to the letter, as a trailer-of-sorts.

In my yearly plans in January, the Lord gave me a special verse: “Launch out into the deep.” (Luke 5:4). I was also reminded of Paul’s words: “Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power” (Ephesians 6:10).

I began with brainstorming all the things I’d like to accomplish this year. Then with that list, I asked myself:

· What would I attempt if I were sure the Lord were with me infusing wisdom, love, courage, and strength?

· What obstacles seem to be standing in my way?

· What specific things do I need to ask God to give me?

· What are some steps I need to take to get there? (List several)

· Where/how is the Lord prompting me now to step out in faith and risk?

I also included a quote from Lloyd John Ogilvie, one of my favourite authors, who wrote the book, The Lord of the Impossible: “Ask God to help you dare to risk attempting something He’s revealed He wants you to be and do.”

So as you open my card and read my letter, you'll find many questions about my life in 2026. They include such questions as: “What did you risk, and with what results? (Conversely, what risks did you not take, and with what results?) What surprised you? What was your greatest success of the year?” Unexpected events and situations often come up during the year, and my questions included: “What were they and how did you handle them? How did they influence your writing?” “How and where did you most honour the Lord this year?”

Before I get carried away with the questions, just a reminder to note that it will be important to assess what you learned from this process, and what takeaways you can offer for my plans and writing in 2027.

With love from your younger self,
Sandi

PS—I’ve tucked the Christmas card and letter in all my notes for the InScribe Writers’ Online blog. You’ll find it in the “December” notes.

 

Sandi Somers’ writing passion is to help readers grow their faith in Jesus, including their vision of what God wants them to be and do. Sandi lives in Calgary, Alberta, the delightful city between the Rocky Mountains and the Prairies, where she enjoys God’s beauty through walking and driving in nature, gardening in season, reading, and connecting with extended family and friends.