Dear Younger Me - Guest Post

Another wonderful guest blog post that really makes you think. I went to high school with Tiffany and was so excited that she wanted to write a post- because she has such talent with words! (and amazing handwriting but that's another story). I hope you all enjoy this post- it really hit home with me! - Brenna

"Dear younger me
Where do I start
If I could tell you everything that I have learned so far
Then you could be
One step ahead
Of all the painful memories still running thru my head
I wonder how much different things would be
Dear younger me,"

I'm a type A personality. I'm a planner. I lack a lot of patience when it comes to things I want. I like to have control. Scratch that. I like to pretend I have any control. So when things don't go as planned, I'm a bit of a mess. I'd love to be one of those care-free, free-spirited, role with the punches people, but, well, that's just not who I am.

I started a Bible study with a friend recently, and we got into a discussion about how selfish we really are. At first I didn't want to admit it. I had the no way, no how, not me words running through my head. But it was quite clear that the only reason I was in denial was because her words struck a cord with me. A real, honest, stings a little when you think about it, type of cord.

I'm selfish. I spend much of my time planning things the way I want them. I worry when things aren't exactly how I hoped they'd be. I think too often about how little inconveniences will affect my life. There's a whole lot of "I's" in that paragraph. There's a whole lot of "I's" in my life.

When I was listening to the song "Dear Younger Me" by MercyMe, I started wondering what I would write to my younger me. And then, it hit me- "He must become greater. I must become less" (John 3:30).

What a different world we would live in if there was a whole lot more of Jesus and a whole lot less of "us." And I think, as Christians, we all have fallen into the trap of thinking that in order to change this broken world, all we need to do is teach more people to become like us. But the world doesn't need more people like us; it needs more people like Jesus.

So how do I become less, and more importantly, how do I ensure that He becomes greater? I relinquish the control I think I have. I lay my burdens at the alter. And, I pray. I pray because, let's be real here, He's the only one who can truly change us from the inside out. 

As the song goes,
"Dear younger me
It’s not your fault
You were never meant to carry this beyond the cross
Dear younger me"

Tiffany is a small town girl married to her high school sweet heart. She is a nurse practitioner by day and a momma to a sweet baby boy by morning, noon, and all through the night. She's a lover of St. Louis Cardinals baseball, vacations on the beach, all things chocolate, and above all else- Jesus!