There will come a day when this boy will be yours. The newborn in my arms in the shadows of midnight, the blur of blonde hair racing down the stairs in Barney pajamas on Christmas morning, the jeans and tractor shirt wearing preschooler not sure why he has to go to school and the eight-year-old tenderhearted boy refusing to spar a girl. That sweet boy will be yours. He will always be mine, but you will take my place in many ways.

It will be you to comfort him when he’s scared.  It will be you who kisses him goodnight.  It will be you he shares his dreams and aspirations with.  It will be you who holds his heart.  The same heart that beat against my chest as I rocked him to sleep each night.  It will be your eyes that are his peace.  It will be your heart that is his home.  

Sweet girl, that is now you.

Right now, you are everything to your parents.  And how I pray you are cherished, loved on, praised and upheld.  I pray you are being taught that you’re a daughter of the King.  I pray you are shown and told what a gift you are.

I am raising my son to view you that same way.

His Dad and I also did our best to show him what a Godly marriage looks like. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but it was full of love, joy, peace, forgiveness and selflessness. Marriage isn’t something the world holds in a very high esteem, and certainly not Christian marriages. And there will be obstacles thrown in your way. But when it’s a marriage centered with Christ those obstacles can be overcome.

Sweet girl, I’m so thankful for you! I promise to let him leave, and cleave! His father and I want to always be a support to you both, and don’t think for a minute that if you have children that we won’t be the best grandparents in the world! But we know that our role changes when you say your vows to one another. We will love you and help you, even if that means stepping aside when we want to jump in. And I have a feeling this “fix-it-Mama” will have to sit on her hands to keep from doing that. But no matter what, we promise to love you both and to encourage you together as a family!

Treat yourself with the respect that you deserve as a lady. Don’t unwrap the beauty of who you are for anyone else. My son has been taught to do the same for you. Please please protect your heart, your mind and your body.  It will be worth it. Look forward to the amazing man that awaits you! There are so many good and wonderful blessings ahead for you. I already know that you are one of the best blessings for me too.

I love you, my daughter-in-law. If I didn’t, I could never pass on to you my most precious son. 

To my dear sweet future Son-in-Law,

I don’t know you yet, but already, I love you. I love you so much, because some day, you will love my daughter. And she will return that love.

Do you know I’m praying for you right now and have been since you were just a young boy? I’m praying not just for the sake of my daughter and her happiness, but also for your heart. You will be the father of my grandchildren, and very much a well-accepted part of our family. You will not only be my son-in-law, but will become part of this family and considered a son.

For years I’ve told my daughter that right now, at this exact moment, God is preparing a sweet boys heart just for hers. Two hearts that will perfectly fit together. A boy that God is giving the same morals and values He’s given to her. I am already so excited for the life you’ll give my sweet girl.

I can tell you must be a very special person to have gained (and kept) sweet girls attention. I asked her one day what she was looking for in a boyfriend and her answer immediately made me think it would take a special, godly man to meet those standards. She knew, and wasn’t afraid to say, her first kiss would be saved for her wedding day. She wasn’t interested in “dating around”, she was interested in finding a husband-worthy man. Said man would have to ask her Dad for permission to date her and the dates would need to be supervised. She is a determined girl, you’ll learn that about her.

But first, there are a few things you must know. You have to know just how much we love and adore our sweet girl. There’s not a thing in this world we wouldn’t do to see her waking every morning with a smile on her face and to have every day fill her heart with complete joy. Although I must warn you, the morning smile takes a few minutes to surface. And once it does, there isn’t any stopping it.

Dear Son, I know at first you’ll be more interested in how gorgeous she is on the outside. And she sure is. But trust me, she is breathtakingly beautiful on the inside, too. As you get to know her, you’ll learn the way her heart beats for what she’s most passionate about.

• She loves her Jesus and has a deep, personal and authentic relationship with Him.
• God gave her a heart for children with special needs. And she will do anything to brighten their day.
• She is a family girl through and through. She is incredibly close with her father and I and has an unstoppable bond with her brother.

But I will warn you, she’s a pistol!

Don’t be shocked when you come home from work one day to discover she’s rescued every stray animal she came across that day. Her heart for animals is large. Perhaps just figure on building her a barn straight away to house all the animals she’ll rescue over the years.

At this point, it’s too soon to tell what kind of a homemaker she’ll be. I can assure you you’ll be eating well, even if you have to step over shoes to get to the table. If you’re okay with tripping over piles of clothing or finding candy wrappers strung about the home in various places, she’ll be forever grateful for your grace, I’m sure.

I can tell this…never, ever even think of whistling in your home. Humming and back-pats are also strongly discouraged. If you do any of those three things, I will sadly not be able to protect you. Perhaps as you offer her grace on the housekeeping end, she’ll offer you grace in these areas.

There will be days of music blaring dance parties. I apologize for that. I may have influenced that at a young age. I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree on that aspect.

This I will tell you for sure, when she falls in love with you, she’s yours. She’s honest to the core, and will never lie to you or betray you. She’ll be a devoted wife and an amazing mother to your children. She will work hard to show her love to her family and will likely have taken after me when it comes to shoving holiday traditions down your throat. Smile and enjoy it. She won’t change. It’s a part of her upbringing and she loves to celebrate!

Please, dear future Son-in-Law, please, lead your family well.  My prayer is that you are a man who puts God first. I pray that you develop such a deep and intimate relationship with the Lord that you just want to continue to pursue him every single day. Invite God into the core of your marriage and seek Him in all things.  That pursuit will allow you to love my daughter in an amazing and powerful way.

Mostly, I ask that you love our daughter well. Seriously. Love her well. Listen to her when she shares her heart. Treat her with respect. Be gentle with her. Never stop telling her and showing her how much you love her. She knows what a healthy marriage looks like. She witnessed it growing up. Don’t let her down. I’ve been praying for you, Son. You can do this!

Until we meet one day,
Your Future Mother-in-Law