Variation on a "Letter to Self"

My sister-in-law recently posed an intriguing challenge on her most recent bog: Write a letter to your 17-year old self. This was originally inspired by a Brad Paisley song: “Letter to Self,” a song that I haven’t heard. The purpose of the challenge would be to give advice to your younger self– for her it would be less than a decade removed…for me 1 and ½! I will loosely accept that challenge today, but may just do bullet points. It is something quite intriguing to ponder. Who would give the better advice? Me to my 17-year old self, or him to his 32-year old self?

Bullet points to my 17-year old self:
­ - Cheer up
­ - Don’t just read the Bible, but pray over the scriptures
­ - Make an effort to keep in touch with your friends
­ - Be nice to your family
­ - You have a lot to look forward to
­ - Maintain a work ethic – you might even be able to fool people into thinking that you’re smart with it

- Be very careful to stay close to God

Notes to my 32-year old self:
­ - Dude, you’re 32. It can stop being all about you.
­ - Hard work is good, but make sure it’s not just focused on “work,” but also on your family.
­ - Hard work is good, but make sure to also work hard on your non-family relationships.
­ - Don’t just read the Bible, but pray over the scriptures
­ - Your family life is awesome, Dude.
­ - Help the poor
­ - Help the poor in spirit

Okay…That’s good for now. I’m teaching Sunday School again on Sunday so could use prayers as I prepare. Scriptures are Acts 24:22 – 25:22, and deals with how Paul is received by 2-3 non-believers while he is in custody. Since non-believers react much the same way today as these gentlemen and lady, I’m hopeful to learn a lot as I delve deeper into the material tonight or tomorrow.

Peace…