Christian Dreams

It is a fact of life that everyone has dreams. I remember us twenty somethings back in graduate school talking amongst our music major selves about our goals and dreams. Many wanted to have recording careers, be the next big artist, write the next big hit, be admired for their musical expertise and talent, climb the success ladder and have a exciting, happy life. Most of us had big, grandiose visions of what the future would hold. Some of my friends actually do have recording careers, have won grammy awards and they tour with famous artists and are "living the dream" so to speak. Sometimes plans and dreams work out. And sometimes they don't. But most often some dreams come true while others fade away with time, or perhaps they are just put on hold for years.

Not one of my friends planned for their wife to die of cancer before their children graduated high school or to have a child who was born with birth defects and difficult health issues. No one planned to get that phone call late at night that their wife fell asleep at the wheel driving home from a gig and was instantly killed. No one planned to spend years doing a job they didn't really care for just because they needed to pay the bills. No one planned for their husband to be diagnosed with cancer a couple years after their wedding and for his once strong and healthy young body to be attacked by cancer until he died leaving two young children missing their father and being raised by a broken-hearted single mom. No one planned to come home to a wife who had fallen in the back yard and is left with an irreversible spinal cord injury. No one planned to have a failed marriage, to develop an alcohol or drug problem, to go into bankruptcy or to never find that special person to spend their life with. Yet these are the stories of many of those friends who dreamed of success, happiness, fame and prosperity.

Things don't always turn out like we plan. I guess most of us know this, but somehow we fight it. We try to control our life. We think that if we got opportunity A, that the next logical step has to be opportunity B followed by opportunity C. When the trajectory of our dreams take us in a diverted direction we wonder if our prayers were ever heard by God. Then we ask, "does He care about me at all?"

I have one young twenty something friend who recently got to sing with the Rolling Stones. She was part of a small choir from her University that got to sing on two numbers at the huge Dallas Cowboys stadium in front of thousands of adoring fans. It was a fun, fantastic experience for her. It was her first "rock" job. Now, for her to think that the next step in her career will be upwards from that venue and that band and those thousands of fans would be ludicrous. She may indeed get opportunities like that in the future, but she'll have to work for them. And the probability of that happening soon is not great.

But don't we do this? We get it in our head that we have accomplished such and such so we deserve the next big step. We have the degree. We have the money.  We have the dream. We have the talent. We have the desire.  Wasn't it God who placed that desire and that dream in our heart?  Why isn't He bringing it to pass? Why have our dreams been diverted and perhaps even crushed?

We feel that our dreams are our purpose. I think this is a mistake. It is an Americanized version of Christianity. Even believers who don't buy into the Prosperity gospel, still live it out in their hearts. They wonder why God denies them the things they want. They really want a giant genie who grants wishes. Now, their wishes are very noble because they don't want to be an ordinary rock star...they want to be a CHRISTIAN rock star....they don't want to be a famous speaker, they want to be a famous CHRISTIAN speaker....they want to be a CHRISTIAN author, so shouldn't God bless that dream?  Americanized Christianity.

God has a bigger purpose than the size of our bank accounts, the admiration of adoring CHRISTIAN "Fans", or our climb up the ladder of success or power in the church. I don't believe what job we have is as important as the knowledge that God has sovereignly placed us there for that particular moment in time. Our purpose is to make Christ known and make His name great. I am a music teacher and musician. You might be a politician, or a businessman, you might be in agriculture or technology or construction. You might be an artist or a writer or a teacher.  Where you are is important because God lives in you and His spirit flows through you. He has a purpose in the ordinary days. He wants to express the love and joy of Christ in you where you are TODAY. He is not waiting to express Christ's life through you until every little part of your plan has lined up in a perfect row of success after success. That is AMERICANIZED Christianity. God has a purpose in the work you have to do TODAY. He has a purpose in the pain you have endured or are enduring TODAY.

I think God does give us dreams. I believe we should work hard towards those dreams and goals. But along the way, if you are diverted from the trajectory of the plan you had for how your dreams will be realized, I want you to follow Matt Chandler's advice.

"Instead of thinking "I need to find my life's purpose in my work", think..."I need to bring God's purpose to this work."  

So if you don't like your job, that is not the point. The point is... are you being Christ to the people around you on a daily basis? Are you shining His glory for all to see?

Believing friend, He knows the past and the future. He knows every thought you've ever had. He knows the dreams that you have and your angst about them not coming true. But His ways are higher, His ways are always good and He longs to see HIS purposes and HIS dreams for you accomplished in your life. You should be concerned about what people think about JESUS because of what they see in you....not what they think about YOU.

It is not easy in this culture, but please stop trying to control everything.  HE is in control and His will will be done. Make that the desire of your heart.

The struggle is real, I know. Been there. Done that. But, "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." This promise includes laying your dreams at His feet.

Let's pray for each other as we strive to glorify Him no matter our circumstances! Then, maybe HIS dreams will be our dreams.