Discovering Your Dream Life

“But now thus says the LORD, he who created you,

O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have called you by name, you are mine.”

Isaiah 43:1

Are you inspired by a dream for your life? Chances are, if you are inspired by a dream, others will be as well. Think of the inspiration of one man’s dream four decades ago when he said, “I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveowners will be able to sit together at the table of brotherhood that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” 

What is your dream? You should know that it is of no use unless you discover it, just as a good harvest of golden wheat dies if it stays to rot in the field. But, when you truly discover and define your dream, you will realize the distinct reason God put you on this earth!

Perhaps it’s time to reveal your life’s dream. After all, what’s there to lose? There’s nothing to be afraid of, I assure you. And God Himself is on your side! Commit yourself to a dream! Nobody who tries to do something great but fails is a total failure. Why? Because you can always rest assured that you have succeeded in life's most important battle: the fear of trying.

Let’s get started on Discovering Your Dream Life. First, you’ll need to Get alone with God. The main reason people never uncover their purpose in life is they never stop long enough and listen to what God is saying. This going away from the television, away from work, away from people, just for a little while each day. Just get quiet for a few minutes and let God talk to you. He has a lot to say!

Next, you’ll need to review your gifts and talents. The Bible says we each have gifts. What are the gifts God has given you? Remember now, you didn't choose them. That’s why real fulfillment comes when you use those gifts for the dream God gave you. So ask yourself, What are my best abilities?  What do I really like to do? What are your desires? Don’t be afraid of your desires. As a Christian God has given you “the desires of your heart.” That doesn’t mean He gives you whatever you want. It means He gives you your wants!

Now, take a look at your personal experience. Examine your desires, your talents and your history. This is powerful thing! The Bible says, "All things work together for good" God doesn’t waste a thing. He uses all your training, skills, expertise, all the good times and the bad to build the person He needs you to be. God integrates every moment of your life, so take a good, honest look at it.

Then, let the dreams begin! Taking hold of your dreams means exploring whatever roads, journeys and adventures they will lead you. Explore new areas of ministry, business, and education. There are grand new possibilities every day! Get active and participate. Take classes; volunteer, travel. The sparks of your dream will soon ignite.

Finally, record your dream. When your dream is clear, write it down. This brings it one step closer to reality. It will give you resolve and bring undeniable definition and form to your life’s dream. You must do more than have an idea; you must make and follow a plan for implementing it. Dreams don’t come true just by “daydreaming.” Write them down and like a rudder on a boat, allow them to become a guiding force in your life.

Never forget that whoever God says you are, that is who you are. Let Him speak to you today so that He can introduce you to that very special person He created you to be in HIS dreams.

Today’s Prayer

Lord, please allow me to see my life the way You do; through Your eyes. Allow me to see and nurture the talents and gifts you have given me. Reveal to me all that I am good at doing, and how I can do those things more and more for Your Kingdom and greater glory. Reveal my purpose and allow me to rest in the knowledge that because you are good, you are working for good in every situation in my life. Keep me moving in the right direction, even though I can't see all of Your incredible plan. Lead me on this great adventure, this miraculous journey to my destiny in You. Amen. 

DREAM A BIG DREAM

“And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams;”

                                                Acts 2:17

Along with every individual in the world, you have been created by God to have a glorious dream, a magnificent destiny and a higher reason for living. On that day long ago when God created you, He needed something accomplished on Earth that no other person could do, so He designed you to do it better than anyone else could.

Your God-designed, unique destiny, your dream, that certain something only you can do better than anyone is meant by our Lord to change the course of human history. Every one of us, and you are NO exception, has a moment when our dream and destiny can somehow impact the lives of people all over the world for generations to come. So, as you journey through the adventure of your life, remember that God has already arranged appointments and opportunities that will fulfill your destiny of making an eternal impact on His Kingdom.

What are these dreams? (No, I don’t mean the images that flash through your sleeping mind in the night.) By dreams, I mean the goals and visions that burn so brightly in your heart and permeate your soul with joy at their very thought. These are the strong and clear visions of what you want your life to be at your highest level of fulfillment. Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” You see, it’s all about what you truly want to do with your life, how you want to do it to your greatest potential, and who you want to become in the process.

Your dream is more than a goal. It should be the very definition of your life. Eventually, you should be able to define your life in one word. When people think of Michael Jordon, they think "basketball." When they think of Shakespeare, they think "Playwright." What word pops into the minds of your family and friends when they thing of you? Why not "servant," "soul winner," "giver," or "discipler"?

As you go about your day today, please know that dreams do come true. Without that possibility, God would not incite us to have them. Next week, we’ll discuss how you can discover a clearer view of your dreams and some very real tips for making your dreams become reality.

Today’s Prayer

Lord, thank you for creating me. Give me the courage to make my dreams come true. For, I know you have given me those dreams. If they come true for me, they come true for you. Oh, that you would allow me to do great things for You and Your Kingdom. Grant me that I would never underestimate what you have created me to do and the great things you need me to do this very day. Amen.

God, please Bless America

Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD,

the people he chose for his inheritance.

                                    Psalm 33:12

Please take a moment to read and meditate upon this proclamation given by Abraham Lincoln in 1863 . . .

“It is the duty of nations as well as of men to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God; to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon; and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations are blessed whose God is the Lord.

Know that by His divine law, nations, like individuals, are subjected to punishments and chastisements in this world. May we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war which now desolates the land may be a punishment inflicted upon us for our presumptuous sins, to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people?

We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we have grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown.

But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us.

It has seemed to me fit and proper that God should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice, by the whole American people.”

This proclamation is more ominous when observed from its historical perspective. Only four years before, a prayer and revival movement swept across America. It was not a planned event with guest speakers and complicated productions. It had no schedule and began spontaneously without any time limit. It was fast-paced, Spirit-led and genuine. As the phenomenon spread, news began to spread. Newspapers reported on the meetings because of the enormous crowds. Telegraph operators discovered that similar occurrences were happening all over the growing nation. A million souls were swept into the Kingdom, including folks in the South, in both Black and White churches. People and communities were changing.

Yet, despite the blessings of a great nation in revival, America’s sins remained an open wound before God. And during the height of the Civil Ware, that is what Lincoln called us to recognize. Has anything really changed that in 148 years . . . or in 2000 years? It can change today if we repent our sins and recognize our blessings!

What does the future hold for America and other nations of the world? God only knows. We can only pray for God’s tender mercies upon us and use His blessings to sweep more souls into the Kingdom of God!

Today’s Prayer

Lord, I thank you for this great nation and for the freedom to worship and praise You to my hearts desire! Thank you for the blessings you have given me. Please open my heart and eyes that I might use your blessings to bless others. Forgive me, forgive us, as a nation under God, for our sins and for turning away from you. Give us the courage to forever turn our faces toward you so that we may clearly see where you are leading us. Amen.

THE ROAD OF LIFE

"Do not be deceived: 'Bad company corrupts good morals'"

                                                    1 Corinthians 15:33

Fellowship is such an illustrious word! It is derived from the idea of two people traveling together on a ship. It meant two or more companions, working on a journey together, sharing one common community and communication. Along the way they would revel in the energy of the relationship and experience the adventure together.

I think of my own journeys on airlines in the modern age. Fellowship can be impossible on a long flight when you’re sitting next to someone who isn’t very nice, but instead rude and demanding. I am sure you have had this experience as well. The hours go by so slowly. Fellowship like this can make you look for the nearest emergency exit!

In the long-term, fellowship must be taken very seriously. If we choose the right partners in fellowship, it sustains us, causes us to grow in faith and ultimately brings us closer to God. But, the wrong fellowship, one that is negative or unhealthy, can break your spirit and tear down your soul.

If you were to check the passengers on the journey of your life, who would be there? Are there people who can assist you in getting to your final destination in victory? Or is your vessel filled with those who make you stumble and fall?

Perhaps you have never considered fellowship like this before, but the company you keep is essential to the success or failure of your entire life. You may like to believe that you are immune to the influence of others, but we are designed by God as social creatures. Those around us affect our behavior.

The Bible says, "Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnerships have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?" If you are constantly surrounded by the voices of anxiety, you may be in fellowship with the darkness of fear. This would keep you anchored to the shores of safety and comfort. But, you were made for the journey, not to rest at the docks.

Don’t set sail with the wrong companions. You may find yourself seeing everything through a dense fog and end up at the wrong destination. Faith comes by hearing, but so do doubt and fear. How much better is it to voyage with Jesus Christ, to climb aboard and find Jesus at rest in spite of the storm around you. With Jesus as your traveling partner, you can raise the sail of hope and embark on a journey, knowing that joy and wisdom will travel with you!

Whatever you find in the hold of your ship that causes you to fellowship with darkness, throw it overboard this very moment! Invite Jesus into your mind and ask the Holy Spirit to bring you to home.

Today’s Prayer

Lord, I pray that the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit will be with me on my journey to you. Protect me from those who would sink me into despair. Surround me with people who believe in you and my life in you. Together, we will seek your Kingdom on this great adventure! Amen.