When Was the Last Time You Wrote a Letter to Your Daughter?

Your daughter is about to take the biggest journey of her life in becoming a young woman of God. High school is over and now she is probably walking onto a much bigger campus with many more people. There is one thing she will need on this journey, a father’s wisdom. Whatever your situation may be, the letters I wrote for my daughter during her freshman year of college would echo a father’s love for his little girl. Not only did these letters touch her heart, but the hearts of her friends as well.

With my daughter’s permission, I am sharing with you a few samples from these letters so you can be encouraged.

My Daughter,

Mondays can be grueling, especially if you find yourself out late or up on Facebook the night before. Mondays remind me of the great question: Why, oh why, do I get up? Why do I work all day and do all the things I am privileged to do?

Sometime today, I would like you to take a moment to find your why. Why are you in college? Why take classes and write papers? Why put up with some less than exciting people or professors?

My why was always to help people. I got up, did my work for that day and the days that followed because I knew one day, years later, I would be able to work for God on a full-time basis to help others.

You’re not in a great school just for you. God has an amazing plan for others in your life. Take a moment and find your why, so Monday after Monday, it can be just a little easier for you to open your beautiful eyes and be a blessing for others today and for the years to come.

Many days, I knew if I stayed faithful in the present, my future would be amazing.

Have an amazing day! I love you.

P.S. You’re awesome.

Dad

My Daughter,

In the Ten Commandments, God told the people to remember the Sabbath. Several writers in the Bible said they wrote so that we can remember. I want you to remember a principle that has been a fabric of your life for many years.

The secret is that the attitude you choose means everything. Remember that you don’t have to go to college, do papers, work and deal with all these new relationships … you get to.

When you believe you have to, you become a victim of life and of God as if He is torturing you. When you understand that you get to, you have endless energy and creativity because all you do is both a privilege and an opportunity.

I did not have to have you. I wanted you as my daughter, and I count it a privilege that I got to be your father. You decide how you look at the people and responsibilities placed in your life. People who act like victims become negative and, quite frankly, weird. People who get to do life stay positive and attract positivity.

So anytime you feel you’re getting tricked by the enemy into being a victim, thinking that you “have to,” just rebuke him and declare “I get to do this.” You’ll find yourself smiling, and you’ll have more energy for some of the more challenging tasks.

I love you, and I am glad I get to still be your Dad.

Dad

I hope you enjoyed me sharing with you my father’s heart. If you have a daughter starting college, I encourage you to take this time to speak truth and wisdom into her life. I have put these letters in to a book form called Letters to My Daughter as a tool to bless you, cause you to think, make wise decisions and help your daughter become who God created her to be!

Doug Weiss, Ph.D., is a nationally known author, speaker and licensed psychologist. He is the executive director of Heart to Heart Counseling Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and the author of several books including, Letters to My Daughter. You may contact Dr. Weiss via his website, drdougweiss.com or on his Facebook or by phone at 719-278-3708 or through email at [email protected].