Write a Letter to Your Future Self

“Why is it you feel content?” asked my spiritual director some years ago. He noticed in that moment the weather in my spiritual life was 72 and sunny. This question got me thinking. Why did I feel content? I reflected with him out loud. I was reading, journaling, and working out. Conversations with my family felt good. And I was proud of the work I was doing in ministry.

“You could write these things down,” he suggested, knowing writing things down is one of my favorite hobbies. “Then, when you feel less content, you can look back and remember what it looks like for you to feel content.

His idea jogged my memory. Several years back on the verge of a sabbatical, I wrote a letter to my future self. Although I was filled with joyful anticipation at the weeks of rest and reflection that lay ahead of me, I also felt sad when I considered the pastoral ministry I would miss. I love the work God has set before me, and I didn’t want to forget it when I grew so cozy in the rest and reflection of sabbatical. In my letter, I reminded future Lisa how much I love serving as a pastor.

In those rare moments of clarity, it is worth grabbing a pen, or typing a note in your phone. How often do moments of clarity descend upon us? How often do the five people in my family ride together in a vehicle without fighting? How often does our puppy not destroy a perennial when roaming the backyard? How often isn’t it windy in southwest North Dakota? Right. Rarely.

What might that letter say, if you were to capture a moment of contentedness and pass it along to your future self? How might you assure your future self that you are, actually, enough just as you are? You do not need more money or fancier things. The way you look, feel and move around the world is just fine, beloved one.

Today may not be that particular day of clarity, when the spiritual weather in your life is 72 and sunny. No worries. That day of contentedness is somewhere around the corner. Keep a pen and paper handy.