Dear Future Spouse

Writing is a powerful tool that enables personal progression. Unfortunately, this is a tool that isn't used to its full potential by many. In this article, I wanted to introduce a form of writing that is more powerful than just recording your thoughts and the events of the day. The particular form of writing I'll be focusing on is called Letter to Future Spouse.

This powerful form of writing can be incredibly helpful for teenagers to use, and the pattern is easy to adapt to someone who is already married. This letter writing can be a potent form of accountability and ministering, as well as a medium for deep reflection.

Part of what makes these letters powerful is that they are written with the intention that they will be read. As you begin composing these letters, promise yourself that the night before your wedding you will give your future spouse a box full of letters. It can be fun to imagine how they will probably stay up really late reading the things you have written to them.

These letters are pretty straightforward. Start by writing "Dear Future Wife" or "Dear Future Husband" at the top of the page, and then just write whatever is on your mind. Write whatever you would write in a letter to someone you know now and care about deeply. That will often include your activities from the day, but it doesn't have to. I began writing to my future wife when I was 18. I would talk about what I did that day, battles for self-mastery I won, battles for self-mastery I lost, my thoughts, my feelings, I would ask questions, I wrote her stories, I even composed poetry. I didn't realize until years later how corny some of those poems were, but my Darling loves them (sometimes because they're corny).

These letters may seem a little ridiculous, but they are powerful. One of the main ways that these letters will benefit you is by changing the way you think about your choices and actions. When you recognize that these letters will be read by someone you would really like to impress, it becomes uncomfortable to write about all of the poor decisions you make. As you consistently account to your future spouse through these letters, you will begin to pause and think when faced with the opportunity to do something dumb. At that moment you will remember that you will have to write later about this decision to someone you really want to impress. Remembering that makes it easier to go and do something awesome instead. Then later you can write "Dear Future Spouse, Today I had the chance to do something dumb, but I thought of you and am a better person because of it."

Another powerful effect of these letters is on the person you are writing them to. As I mentioned before, I began writing letters to my Future Wife when I was 18 years old. I was 23 when I married my Darling. I wrote to her almost every night and over that period accumulated more than 2,000 letters to give her. Imagine the good it could do to read over and over again "Dear Future Wife, I am a better man because of you and I look forward to finally meeting you." You can begin showing that you care before you even know the name of who you are writing to.

If you are already married, it isn't difficult at all to adapt these letters. You just drop "Future" from the beginning of the letter. Writing these letters may be even more enjoyable for you than for a teenager because you can see how your spouse reacts when they read them.

By writing to someone with the intention that these letters will be read takes normal journaling to a deeper level. It promotes deeper thought and more thorough reflection. It can be a very meaningful way to minister. It can even become one of the most uplifting parts of your Border Patrol.

To hire me as your life coach where we can create a plan to put the above principles into practice for you, follow this link.  Fighting Like a Dragon - Life Coaching