Are You Prepared To Live Out Your Dreams?

“When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion,we were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, "The LORD has done great things for them." The LORD has done great things for us;we are glad.

Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like streams in the Negeb! Those who sow in tears
shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing
shall come home with shouts of joy,
bringing his sheaves with him.”

Psalm 126:1-6 (NLT)

Dreams are without doubt a tremendously powerful and dynamic force in the lives of many people! Even the word “dream” has the capacity to conjure up in our mind images of things long forgotten or hoped for. There are “daydreams”, which are idle wishes and empty desires that don’t have a snowball’s chance in “h#*@” of coming to fruition. There are the “dreams of sleep” where the sub-conscious mind speaks, often times in riddles or wild and unfathomable imagery.

But there also can be another kind of dream. This “other kind” of dream is a key part of the focus for this message. These dreams can be defined as “an innermost yearning for something we know that we need or desire, but yet find it difficult to express or even grasp a clear understanding of what it is that we seek. This type of dream often is the spark for great accomplishments or unwitting self discovery. On the other hand, this type of dream can lead to a self defeating sense of frustration or an unyielding need for self fulfillment.

Now what do the words of Scripture say about dreams and those who express them? Perhaps the greatest dreamer in scripture was Joseph (Genesis, Chapters 37-50), who informed his brothers he surely would someday be a great leader and rule over even his family. In response to Joseph’s words spoken as a youth, his brothers conspired to wreck his dream, but God had a different plan. His purpose in Joseph's life would be fulfilled. And yes, Joseph would indeed rule over his brothers and all his kindred, in fulfillment of his dream.

For each of us, the secret to the Christian's dreams can be found in Joseph’s story! If the Christian desires to see their "dreams come to fulfillment," they must make an effort to stay in the perfect will of God, throughout their life. Only then can we be confident of an enduring partnership with God, as we work toward accomplishing our dreams. My brothers and sisters, I believe with all my heart, soul and mind that every Christian has within them the dream for a full and complete relationship with God. There is no one-way relationship between God and humanity. God reaches out for us, and we long for God in both our dreams and our reality, just like Zaccheus… (Luke 19:1-10)

“When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then they said among the nations,
"The LORD has done great things for them."
The LORD has done great things for us;
we are glad.

In Psalm 126, the Psalmist offers the reader a commentary on how we can best realize our dreams. The entire psalm, when taken in its context, deals with the longings, desires, hopes and dream of a people who were lost, and ultimately restored to a right relationship with God! This passage from Psalms may appear quite familiar to us, since it is frequently used as a “proof text” for the winning of souls to Christ. Verses 5-6 are often quoted, and the application of the text for this purpose is most definitely not out of order, in terms of the joyous experience one has when receiving Christ into their life. Undoubtedly though, there is much more truth in this brief text concerning the hopes and dreams of a people, than simply the honor and glory of winning souls for Jesus Christ.

As God’s creation, He created us with flaws; flaws that hold us “captive” to our carnal or materialistic desires, in a manner similar to the captivity experience endured by the people of Zion. How fulfilled do you find yourself these days? Some people live a life filled with hope and aspiration, while some seek out unreachable or even unattainable goals. Still others do barely enough to “get over the hump”, as they grudgingly resign themselves to living a life filled with their personal flaws. Others among us; possibly you or even me, think we are supposed to be perfect. And, for that reason we mistakenly attempt to hide our flaws! We mistakenly attempt to hide our flaws from each other and from God.

Yet through faith, even as we seek to understand the nature of our inner flaws, we discover God has given us the emotional, mental and physical strength to overcome the challenges formed by our flaws. A sense of strength delivered to each believer through His Word, and through the love and redemptive death and resurrection of His son, Jesus, the Christ! “We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.” Romans 6:6

My brothers and sisters let’s get real here; regardless of our declared faith in a loving God, as long as we continue to hide or run from facing our flaws through unrealistic dreams, hopes, desires and aspirations we are in denial. Failure is the building block of success! Even with a promise of success from God, Moses failed miserably when he first tried to take the Jews from Egypt. As a result, when first attempting to escape the setting in life you are stuck in, you will unquestionably fail, possibly more than once. Don't worry! It's often God's way of testing how much you truly believe in your own dreams, while helping you clarify, re-evaluate and perfect them. Christian success requires that you recognize for yourself, “I am doing everything in my power to put in my most sincere effort to accept, understand and move past my flaws.”

Only by accepting our flaws as being part of us, can we come to love ourselves in spite of these flaws. Only then can we begin to change and form a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. Only by working toward expressing “within ourselves”…kindness, patience and understanding…do we emulate the Love of God! Glory alleluia, alleluia… as we come to fully allow Him to bestow His mercy upon us do we continue to grow and strengthen ourselves with the Lord. Yes, you may believe in God, but are you aware that our God believes in you?

Giving praise to God, our new and emerging strength provides encouragement and the motivation to continue on with our dreams, despite the flaws we’re still working to change. Yes, God’s grace allows us to carry our flaws gracefully, and His love enables others to witness us in a more positive light, the unquenchable “LIGHT” of Jesus Christ. My friend, “Are you prepared to live out your dreams?”

Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like streams in the Negeb! Those who sow in tears
shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
bringing his sheaves with him.”