Skip to main content

Dear Clara

My daughter, my Clara, my sweet girl,

  You can wear Batman outfits. You can also wear sparkly shoes. You can play with trucks and dinosaurs. You can also play with tea sets and princess dresses.
  Yes, we will happily let you follow your brother on adventures, discovering trees, rocks, and mud, to return with dirty feet and scraped knees. We won't think much of it if you like bugs, or baseball, or the color blue. And likewise, we will be unconcerned if you prefer dolls, ballet, and all things pink and glittery.

  God made you a girl. A beautiful, strong, gentle, capable, precious little girl. Being a girl is a good thing. It is no better and no worse than being a boy. But it is different. And that is a good thing, too. A God-designed thing.
  All girls are not the same, and all boys are not the same. Yet your father and I are different; you and your brother are different.

  One thing we all have in common is this: God made us, just the way we are, intentionally and for the purpose of knowing Him. He did not make a mistake in our design.
  You do not need to be less of a girl. I do not need to be less of a girl.
  But I do need to be less of myself- so that I can be more like Jesus.
  Less like a sinner, lost and broken; more like my Savior, who found me and has made me new.

  I will remind you of these things sometimes, when the world rages against our door with lies. And if you choose to listen, to believe that God designed you well, you will find the incredible joy and inexplicable peace that comes with embracing- not who YOU think you are- but who God says you are.
  After all, He would know. He made you.

  I love you!
    - Mama

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

I love you so much, and I am completely devoted to you, and I know that you’re the man God had for me to marry- BUT, even if none of that was true, there are still hundreds of good reasons for me to marry you. And this fudge is two of them. My eternal thankfulness when Arthur made me fudge

Stuff I Wasn't Planning on Writing Today

At some point in the past few months my phone started notifying me of my Bible app's verse of the day. It was super annoying, because I'm prideful and I don't like to be helped or reminded- I can remember to read the Bible ON MY OWN, thank you very much. And, I don't want to read what cutesy verses you picked out, app, I'll go find something really amazing to read ON MY OWN. Get it? Hear me? I'm fine, on my own. Like I said, I am prideful. I would be more ashamed to admit it, except that I really want to make this clear: I AM SUCH A SINNER. I thought I'd been saying this, but maybe it hasn't been clear. My sin is like, all over the place. I sin every day. It's usually based in pride or selfishness. -BUT-   My sin is not the end of the story. God was merciful towards me, showed me my sin, and saved me. He has caused change in my heart and my life that I never could have accomplished on my own- and I know that with certainty, because I DID try on...

22. What Makes You Different?

First of all, I was created unique from anyone who has ever lived or ever will live. Also, I like to make up really strange dance moves. Dancing horribly is something I am remarkably good at. I have treed a squirrel. Like, without the help of a hunting dog- just treed it on my own. I chased it for a few minutes, chirping at it in what I hoped was a macho-squirrel manner, until it finally became afraid for it’s life. I can sing like a male opera singer. Quite well, believe it or not. It’s surprisingly addictive, and when I start doing it subconsciously in public places things can get very awkward very fast. However, it takes a lot to embarass me. I try to make a habit or embarassing myself regularly enough that embarassment doesn’t put a damper on my day. I have this wonderful ability to talk in a very annoying, squeaky voice- lots of people can do this, but I can laugh in that voice, and the sound of it makes me laugh harder, and so forth. It’s great. I can go fr...