I have a dream…
These words were made famous in August of 1963 by the great Martin Luther King. As he stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., he pleaded with all Americans to end racism. Near the end of his speech, the gospel singer, Mahalia Jackson, cried out, “Tell them about the dream, Martin!” and with her encouragement Rev. King drifted from his prepared speech to share the details of the dream God had put deep within his heart. It’s a dream that lives on…even in these present times.
We’ve all had a dream or two tucked deep within the crevices of our hearts. I know I have. Some dreams were never meant to see the light of day, though. They were just hopeful imaginations and what if’s. Some dreams have lingered, creating a passion and desire within me to see them come alive. Learning to discern which dreams are born out of my flesh and which are born of the spirit within me takes a lot of prayer and soul-searching. I’m a dreamer, after all, but I don’t want to be just a dreamer. I want to be a Dream-Believer.
One thing I love about dreams is that they’re meant to be shared. As Mahalia Jackson encouraged Rev. King to share his dream I, too, am encouraged to share mine. What’s a dream if it’s not meant to be shared? If we keep it locked up inside of us then it has nowhere to go. It’s as if we dare to hope such a dream could ever exist outside the walls of our innermost being. There are just some dreams God never intends to put to rest. If we carry them with us to our grave they risk dying with us and that’s a very sad thing.
I have some dreams that I believe have come from the heart of God. One of them is what you see before you as you read these words. A blog. A place where I can be God’s spokesperson. See, I happen to believe God has called me to be His voice through teaching His Word, through speaking and writing. This blog is a place where I can do that, where I can share how He’s working in my life and encourage you to do the same. I know this space needs a lot of attention. I want to make it more visually appealing. I want to customize it so I can add pictures and other media. I want to add personal touches that make it stand out. I want to generate more interest and appeal to more readers. It takes time. It takes patience. It takes God.
I’ve also written a devotion book, Connecting With God Creatively. Have I told you that? Yes, I think I have. Quite a few times, I’m sure :). It was born out of my January month of fasting two years ago. It has beautiful mixed media illustrations by my friend, Sherry French. It’s now in the hands of my artist son, Brandon, who is working on the final graphic touches. Knowing that God inspired this project means I can put my faith and trust in Him to promote it. Sometimes I’m so excited about it, though, that I want to run ahead of Him. I’m learning it takes time. It takes patience. It takes God.
“To man belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the reply of the tongue.
All a man’s ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the Lord.
Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.” Proverbs 16:1-3
God is the Dream-Giver. It doesn’t matter how many dreams I may have, I know very few of them–if any–will ever survive or see the light of day if I don’t commit every step of the journey to God, if I don’t let Him prepare the way and go before me, if I don’t give Him all the praise and glory. Yes, dreams are meant to be shared, but I’m learning that the best dreams are those God shares with me and asks if I will make them real for Him.
Oh, dear…I feel a salty-tear-cheek-washing threatening to halt my progress here…give me a minute, will you?
It blows my mind when God gives me the privilege of sharing in the work of His hands. Sometimes I can’t help but wonder…why me? And God always answers, “Why not you?” Go figure.
As I fast and pray this month God is showing me that some dreams are way bigger than anything I can dream up on my own. Some dreams require great sacrifices and complete surrender to the work of His hands, knowing that the dream is much, much too big for me alone. I have no idea what this year holds, but I have a feeling that God is going to stretch my faith in unbelievable ways. I guess that means I’ll have a lot to share with you over the next few months.
When God says to me, “Tell them about the dream, Nina!,” you can bet I will because God-sized dreams always have somewhere to go…they’re always meant to see the light of day. God-sized dreams are always meant to live on.
So, stay tuned and please….if God lays my name on your heart, pray for me because a Dream-Believer needs a lot of prayer to see a dream come to life.
gracedtolive 