Dreams- Submitted for editing

Have you ever stopped for a moment to think about what you want? I know this is a dangerous practice. Dreaming. Yes, in our time, in our world, dreamers are a dying breed. It seems like everything around us conspires to kill our dreams, to murder the things that give us life. What I am talking about is going out there and saying, “This is what I want,” with the full knowledge that we are in fact bringing our dreams and desires before God, and telling Him, “You know best and I know the least, so do with my dreams what YOU please.”

This contradicts the idea of the American dream, which tells us that WE have the power to fulfill our dreams and if WE do not make them happen, then we are slackers, stupid or lazy. So, let me be clear. I will go after my dreams with as much energy and purpose that I have in me, but I know that at any moment my life could be changed by the hands that hold me. Ultimately, I hope that my dreams for myself more closely match the dreams of my Father. If I let Him have my heart completely than He will shape, guide and make my way clear. That is my hope as I enter this time of dreaming.

My dreams. It is terrifying to write them out. But, lately I have been trying to do things that scare me. So, here are four of my dreams.

-I dream about being a wounded healer. Someone who has faced the pain within myself in order to more clearly understand the pain of others. Within the pain, I keep my eyes fixed on eyes that are filled with compassion and understanding. To enter the darkness, the living Hell that surrounds so many people, I have had to search hard and deeply. I cannot walk through Hell unless I hold Heaven in my heart.

-I dream about being a mother of children that are not my own, of holding them and teaching them what it means to be loved. Through teaching, writing, and relationship, I want to give them a safe place to be themselves, a place where they can tell their secrets and receive love and compassion. I remember so much about what it was like to be a child with dark secrets, and I do not want that for them.

-I dream about having a home of my own, of sharing my life and my heart with another. I want to be open to possibilities, and share myself freely. I want to go on adventures with a partner who knows who I am. I want the space we inhabit to be a place of freedom. I want to be with someone who has fought for his soul and will get my back as I fight for mine. A battle partner, friend and beloved.

-Finally, I dream about waking dreams in others. Through my life, I want to encourage and enable others to follow their greater purposes, regardless of the risk or comfort level. I want to see those that I love awakened to a deeper Joy, and watch them but their Hope and Trust in the one true and great God. The only one who offers Healing and Deliverance; the walking, living, knowing God. For more on this idea, I recommend reading David Platt’s book Radical, and letting your heart be open to the idea that you may be missing out if you are holding on too tightly to your comfort zone.

On another note, that is in fact related, I am going to Africa this summer. And I have always dreamed about going there. Sometimes, our dreams really do come true.
So, write out your dreams, and then submit them to the author of your life-story for editing. You know what I mean. See what happens. I know it’s going to be awesome.

In the meantime, I’m going to go live out my dreams and see what happens. I’m not going to let the apathy and concrete of Southern California choke out who I was made to be.