Dream Big

I had a dear friend of mine call me to tell me some great news.  She just was accepted into the Army as a First Lieutenant!  Now this is incredible, because you know my feelings about our military…I love, respect and think what they put on the line is beyond words, but there is something else neat about this lady’s story…her age!  Now she wouldn’t want me to call out a number, but she is proud to say she is one of the older First Lieutenant’s commissioned at her base.  She said to me, “This has been a life long dream of mine to walk in my dad’s footsteps.  I have finally done that!”  She even wore her dad’s dog tags during the ceremony.

I tell you, dreams are never too far away.  God proves this everyday.  They might take a little longer to achieve, but if we pursue them with vigor and intentionality then anything is possible.

What is it that you dream of doing in your life?  What is it that you want most of all?  Some who are reading this and might have instantly thought of something.  It might be an idea that never was made real, because life just got in the way.  However, some are reading this and realize that they don’t have any dreams at all.  A lot of us have been in the daily grind for so long that there is just not time for anything else.  Let me just pass on a little word to you…wait for it…here it comes…WRONG!  Wrong!  Wrong!

Dreams are how America was built.  Dreams are the reason we have electricity and modern conveniences.  Dreams are the reason that we landed on the moon.  Dreams are the reason the Civil Rights movement became real.  Dreams are the stuff out of which legends are born.  Dreams take us beyond the average into the extraordinary.

God wants you to dream and reach for the impossible.  So let me share two necessary components for you to achieve your dreams.  1) Audacity 2) God!  Not in that order.

First, we need God.  If God knows us better than anyone else and, in fact, created you He certainly knows of what you are capable.  So ask God.  If you were created to do it…YOU WILL.  God will make all your dreams real.  This is why Lent is so critical.  Drawing nearer to God helps us hear His voice better, understand His will for our lives better and let’s us know how to live.  So get to know God and when you do you will better know your dreams.

Next…AUDACITY!  When you find out what you want to do and what God wants you to do, DO IT.

Here is the definition of it: boldness or daring, with confident disregard for personal safety, conventional thought, or other restrictions.

Abraham had the audacity to hear God’s dream for his life and then do it.  Moses had the audacity to stand before Pharaoh and say LET MY PEOPLE GO!  Paul had the audacity to come back, after attacking Christianity for so long, and preach the Gospel with love and power.  The disciples had the audacity to set the world on fire with the message of Jesus Christ.  I could go on and on, but we must have a certain audacity when we pursue our dreams.

Now one thing is for certain…when you share your dreams people might laugh.  In fact, I know they will.  Or they might say, “Oh, that is great!”  When they are really thinking, “He must be crazy!”  Don’t let it stop you.  Just because others don’t want to dream big it shouldn’t stop you.

Your Lenten journey will produce dreams that you never knew you had.  It will help you understand who you are and what you were created to be.  So start dreaming and start making them become real in your life!  You could just change the world!

Love you all!

Rev. Jim