Letters to my future husband.

I keep a journal for my future husband.  I've done so since I was about sixteen.

When Ali first noticed the journal among my things and I explained to her what it was, her heart nearly burst with joy over my progress in regards to ever getting married.  "Awwww, Emily!  You are a lovey-dovey at heart!"  Ali's the hopeless romantic out of the two of us... I tend to be the hopeless unromantic.  I'm the type who thinks Ethan Hunt from Mission Impossible is far more attractive than the guy from The Notebook.  Another of my friends thought it was hilarious when I shared with her the fact that I was keeping a journal for my future husband.  "Sure, it's cute and all, but... why?"

I write to my FH for a few different reasons.

• Writing is my thing.  I write letters to friends and loved ones all the time.  Why not write letters to someone who will be the most important person in my life?
•  Writing letters or journal entries to a FH are a way to keep my heart and mind focused on what's to come.  I chose not to have a boyfriend in high school and I was distracted at times.  Being single isn't always easy.  Writing to my FH was a reminder of what I was waiting for.  
• I hope that one day my FH will be encouraged and inspired by my letters to him.
• I am able to be reminded to consistently pray for my FH, and I am confident that the Lord will continue to bring him to maturity and growth in his faith. 

I don't write in the journal very often.  In fact, I write to my future husband only three or four time a year.  I figure I won't be married for another few years at least and I don't want to overwhelm my FH with several notebooks full of rambling thoughts from a teenage version of his wife.  I leave the day-to-day details out of the journal (that's what Facebook is for) and limit myself to prayers, words of encouragement, poetry, and occasional doubts and concerns.

I'm not entirely sure how I'll give my future husband the journal.  Certainly not on my wedding night or during our honeymoon, for that matter.  (Who wants their husband to be reading during this time?)  I may give him my purity ring on our wedding day and save the journal for later.  I'll either give him the entire journal at once, or I'll give him one entry at a time over a period of several years.  I may do both.  We'll see. 

When I first started writing to my FH, I was a little skeptical, I'll admit.  Like I said, I'm not the hopeless romantic type.  I'm not one for planning out my wedding years in advance or for picking out potential wedding dresses on Pinterest.  That isn't me.  But keeping a journal for my FH has blessed me in more ways than I thought it would.

Like I said above, writing letters to my future husband has reminded me of what I've been waiting for.  He'll certainly be worth the wait.  Also, while I might not think of him often otherwise, the journal reminds me to keep in regular prayer for my future husband.  Even if I don't know who I'm going to marry yet, God does.  I don't have to know his name in order to pray for him.

If you've ever thought about writing to your future spouse, I recommend it from my limited experience.  If you aren't much of a writer, perhaps you should consider writing one letter to your future spouse.  How encouraging would it be to receive a letter from someone who has been praying for the Lord to guide you long before they even knew you?

I heard about the idea of writing letters to your future husband for the first time online.  Even though it's something I don't usually bother to share these days, perhaps this will encourage someone.

Do (or did) you write letters to your future spouse?

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