An Open Letter to My Future Wife

You might be saying to yourself, "Self, is Brent serious?".  You can respond to yourself with a definite yes.

The past few days and even months have caused me to think about certain things and I feel that this is the proper avenue of sharing these thoughts.

Mind you, I may never get remarried and I'm ok with that.  But if I do, I think it's important for my future wife to know some things about me. So here it goes:

Dear Future Wife,
I know that you are beautiful in every way and that you are a daughter of God.  I also know that you are full of the Holy Spirit.  You're heart is open to the poor and needy. You have strength and dignity, but you know when to laugh. You are wise in your words but you speak in kindness.

I could go on, but there are a few things that'd I'd like for you to know about me:

First of all, I was created by God for a purpose.  Through the course of my life, I've tried to please God and walk the path that He has set out for me.  Along the way, I have made some mistakes.  However, God has been good to me and has allowed me to learn from these mistakes.  I have learned the lesson to chose carefully and be patient.

There are things that you need to know about me before you choose me.  There is nothing shocking or crazy in what is stated below.  I just need you to know what I am passionate about and I need you to accept these things and be willing to encourage me in these matters.

First of all, I have a daughter who is my princess and she means the world to me.  Please know that this will not be a contest of who I love the most.  There are different areas of my heart dedicated to different things.  I will not make you compete for attention, nor will I do the same to her.  I expect that you can love my daughter as your own child and welcome her into your heart unconditionally.

Secondly, you must know that I have a calling from God to minister His Word to others.  I am not a man that desires financial wealth or lots of nice things.  I may not always be able to give you what you want but I promise to provide for your needs, not only financially but also emotionally.  Things may get tough but we must rely on God to guide us in our decisions.

Because I have a calling from God, I want you to know that I am passionate about what I do.  My heart beats to see the live's of people changed by God.  I am an instrument for that purpose.  I know you are the same way.  Some days, it may seem like my mind is far from you and that I am consumed with the things I am involved with with.  But I promise you that, as long as God is at the center of our lives, you will be the first person that I think of when I wake up, and the last person that I think of before I sleep.  I will not put our ministry or job above our marriage.

I guarantee that there will be days that I will be stupid and you will want to punch me in the face.  But I know that you will extend grace and mercy to me and realize that I am not perfect.  I am a work in progress.  I promise to hold you in the same regard.

Lastly, I promise to love you just because.  Not because I have fallen in love with you, but because I choose to love you.  So if you ask me why I love you, the answer will always be "because I want to."  All I ask is that you return the favor.

Your's truly,
Brent

Open Box

Think upon the following analogy:  It is a retail analogy in which God owns a store that humans are bought with a currency called love.  The product (you) determines it's own pricing.  You get to tell people how much love you want in order to make the purchase.  Also consider that people have "love credit cards" that have been issued by society and make the claim that you can pay for something with the love that you do not have and slowly repay that love over time (but in the end, you'll spend more than you wanted to and will most likely end up broke because of it).

I want you to know that I am an open box product.  This means that someone took me home, opened me up, took out all the pieces, and tried to make me work.  Once they realized that I was not the product that they wanted, they tried to repackage me and return me to the place where they picked me up.  If you have ever worked in retail, you know that customers are the worst at repackaging things.

The proprietor of the store not only knows that the return policy is unconditional, but He also knows exactly how to put the pieces back into the box.  As I am properly repackaged, the observation is made that there are a few pieces missing.  Knowing that the unit is still operational, God carefully continues to repackage me without the original pieces in place.  Some pieces can be remanufactured and added to the package, but some cannot.

Typically, open boxed products are placed with a label stating this fact, and they are reduced in price.  I tell myself that I don't expect as much in payment from the next buyer, but that I will not accept credit.

I may sit on the shelf for the rest of my life, or someone might come for me tomorrow.  Either way, I am content to wait patiently.