Does God Ever Dream?
NOTE: I recently read a “blog” by fellow Worship Pastor, Thomas Miller, of Gateway Church in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. I liked it enough that I thought I would share it with you. However, I decided to personalize it…so, the following “blog” was mostly written by Thomas with a few of my own thoughts mixed to make it a little bit more personal for me and anybody who reads this from Morningside’s website. I hope you enjoy it and are encouraged!
I dream alot…
As a child, I dreamed of having superpowers (especially flying and invisibility…I was very shy).
As a teenager, I dreamed of one day having the boldness and courage to write and sing songs that would bless other people (remember, I was very shy).
As a high school graduate, I dreamed about my wife (who would she be? where is she now? when will we meet? how will I know?)
As a Customer Sales Associate, I dreamed about ministry (I was bored and felt like my passions, gifts and “dreams” were being wasted).
As a volunteer worship leader, I dreamed about being in full-time ministry (I didn’t want my own fears and “shyness” to prevent me from fully obeying the Lord’s call!)
As a “new” Worship Pastor, I dreamed of being at a big church, in a big city, with a big budget (Pastors in big cities don’t have financial strains on their ministry, right?)
As a full-time Worship Pastor, I dream of simpler times (leading worship twice on Sunday, once on Monday, once on Wednesday, with a practice on Thursday and many other events and activities throughout the week can get pretty exhausting!)
Have you ever noticed that dreams are mainly made up of “better” times and/or bigger things than you are currently experiencing? Yes, dreams are fascinating. They lift us above our current experience into a realm that is full of hope and what-ifs.
Have you ever noticed that during the hard times, often the dreams are what get you through? In fact, I think that in the hard and dark times, the dreams become bigger, more vibrant and more tangible. There is hope in the dream. There is life in the dream.
Think about this: Could it be that God did not create the dreams for the hard times, as much as He created the hard times for the dreams? Did you get that? Let me say that again…just in case, “Maybe God didn’t create the dreams for the hard times, but instead He created the hard times, so that we would dream!”
“We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not dissapoint us…” (Romans 5:3-5 NIV)
In the hard times, we are able to see a perspective (a.k.a. “a dream”) that we would have never known existed had we not gone through the hard time. If we allow the Lord to use the hard time to our advantage, we don’t become hopeless and bitter. We pray. We forgive. We hope. We dream.
And then once the night is over, we can wake up and put those dreams into action. But, it takes the night for the dream.
Does God ever dream? Yes. Here was one of His dreams that He put into action:
“For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.” (Ephesians 1:4)
We are now in our 4th week, in a 5-week series, here at Morningside Community Church called, “Live Like You Were Dying” based off of the Tim McGraw song by the same name. And so I have this question that is burning in me to ask you…
“What are the dreams that you have…and have you taken any steps towards seeing those dreams put to action?” Because, you don’t know how much time you have left to fulfill those dreams. What if this is the time? Are you ready?
But, honestly, there’s an even more important question that should be asked…a much bigger question than, “What are your dreams?” And that is simply this…
“What is GOD’s dream for your life…and are you actively seeking to fulfill His dreams every day?”
God does have a dream. If you look around you, you can see that the night is so prevelant in the world. He obviously has some pretty big dreams. Could God have a specific dream for you today? You bet! I believe that it has something to do with bringing light into the darkness, hope to the dejected, healing to the wounded, justice to the downtrodden, salvation to the lost, love to the unlovely, hope to the dying…and a ton of other stuff!
It is our call to do our part to wake up the world and put His dream into action. Will you join me?
