This past week, I have been around a number of people who have big dreams. The kind of people who have amazing hearts and amazing passions and gigantic dreams and visions of where their life will take them. They are the people who do really cool things like go to Africa and serve the poor and the orphan or who fight for the right thing in a situation even when all seems against them or who pursue music and worship passionately or who work hard to build an amazing home office or who move across the country to serve God. They trust in God and in His ability to accomplish all that He has said He will accomplish. In conversations with these people, I usually sit in awe and wonder why I can't even think of such cool ideas for a future, let alone have the level of passion that they do for getting there and accomplish those things. At the same time, I am motivated to go home and ponder my own dreams, because I know that they are there, even if they get buried for awhile.
I just found a piece of paper from sometime last January hiding at the bottom of our laptop bag (along with lots of other things). It was basically a blank grid and was "goals for 2008 and beyond" in various areas of life (family, ministry, life with God, health, finances etc.). We were given the sheet at a young adult meeting at church and were supposed to fill it out and then to think about it/pray over it etc. in the next year. Usually, I just look at these things and don't take them seriously. I am not a major goals-driven person, and don't do well when I feel that I have to do something. For some reason, this was different and I filled in the sheet as best as I could. I looked over it in the following months and diligently tried to pray through the things, seeking God in them. I even gave a talk to that same group some time later about our dreams in life and that these are generally put in us by God and that He desires to give us the desires of our heart, as we seek and follow and worship Him. I believe that most of our life dreams, those that line up with the heart and ways of God, are of Him and are to be pursued in Him. He wants us to excel in the things close to our heart, because they are close to His heart, and He created us, individually, to work out His purposes on the earth.
At some point in the year, I gradually stopped looking at the sheet on a regular basis and then didn't look at it for months. The goals and dreams are in my heart, so I didn't really need the sheet. At the same time, some of those goals and dreams were seeming unattainable, due to the circumstances of life. There are the times to grip with the firmest grip to these dreams and goals and promises from God, but also the times where our strength to do so often fades. As I looked back on that sheet today, I realized that I had "attained" and grown in many of the areas that I had written down, in specific ways. I am amazed at God's faithfulness in these things, since I couldn't have moved forward in those areas without His strength and faithfulness to me. I also saw some goals that I hadn't quite reached. Some were due to my own shortcomings, some were due to circumstances beyond my control or to spiritual warfare, some were due to lack of focus on that goal and some were not for 2008 but were for "beyond."
I am not big on new years resolutions and on people's claims to suddenly turn over a new leaf. I am not about hype and over-excitement for new goals or directions in life (I have seen too many people that are "for sure" going to do this or that and then quit a week later or get discouraged when it doesn't work out like they want or as quickly as they want or have a new "for sure" the next week). I am more of a quiet, internal excitement and determination person, hoping to go where I desire to go in and with God. I believe that most major change happens slowly and that most people just take awhile to notice it, so it seems to be sudden.
Being around super passionate or driven people inspires me to examine my dreams once more and being around people whose dreams are super-duper big makes me willing to dream bigger. I encourage you to look at your dreams and hopes and to take the steps to get there, trusting in God and following His leading in them.
I just found a piece of paper from sometime last January hiding at the bottom of our laptop bag (along with lots of other things). It was basically a blank grid and was "goals for 2008 and beyond" in various areas of life (family, ministry, life with God, health, finances etc.). We were given the sheet at a young adult meeting at church and were supposed to fill it out and then to think about it/pray over it etc. in the next year. Usually, I just look at these things and don't take them seriously. I am not a major goals-driven person, and don't do well when I feel that I have to do something. For some reason, this was different and I filled in the sheet as best as I could. I looked over it in the following months and diligently tried to pray through the things, seeking God in them. I even gave a talk to that same group some time later about our dreams in life and that these are generally put in us by God and that He desires to give us the desires of our heart, as we seek and follow and worship Him. I believe that most of our life dreams, those that line up with the heart and ways of God, are of Him and are to be pursued in Him. He wants us to excel in the things close to our heart, because they are close to His heart, and He created us, individually, to work out His purposes on the earth.
At some point in the year, I gradually stopped looking at the sheet on a regular basis and then didn't look at it for months. The goals and dreams are in my heart, so I didn't really need the sheet. At the same time, some of those goals and dreams were seeming unattainable, due to the circumstances of life. There are the times to grip with the firmest grip to these dreams and goals and promises from God, but also the times where our strength to do so often fades. As I looked back on that sheet today, I realized that I had "attained" and grown in many of the areas that I had written down, in specific ways. I am amazed at God's faithfulness in these things, since I couldn't have moved forward in those areas without His strength and faithfulness to me. I also saw some goals that I hadn't quite reached. Some were due to my own shortcomings, some were due to circumstances beyond my control or to spiritual warfare, some were due to lack of focus on that goal and some were not for 2008 but were for "beyond."
I am not big on new years resolutions and on people's claims to suddenly turn over a new leaf. I am not about hype and over-excitement for new goals or directions in life (I have seen too many people that are "for sure" going to do this or that and then quit a week later or get discouraged when it doesn't work out like they want or as quickly as they want or have a new "for sure" the next week). I am more of a quiet, internal excitement and determination person, hoping to go where I desire to go in and with God. I believe that most major change happens slowly and that most people just take awhile to notice it, so it seems to be sudden.
Being around super passionate or driven people inspires me to examine my dreams once more and being around people whose dreams are super-duper big makes me willing to dream bigger. I encourage you to look at your dreams and hopes and to take the steps to get there, trusting in God and following His leading in them.
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