What are you dreaming about? Wishing for? Waiting for?
Just those questions alone can bring more to mind than your heart was ready to process. I know it's true for me. I haven't blogged for three years. Want to know what one of my dreams is? Writing! Ironic, huh?
In this past month I've switched some things up with positive results. I used to wait to spend time with God at the very end of my day and that came with varying results. Either I'd be so exhausted that I'd only muster enough to open up the Bible app on my phone and settle for just a nugget of God's truths that day. Sometimes I'd get my Bible opened then be sidetracked by a nephew getting ready for bed or a whiny dog. Sometimes, I'd forget altogether. None of this made for a strong me.
When the kids started back to school this year, I decided to make a change for myself. Instead of getting up at the same time as always, I set my alarm for 5:00 a.m. allowing myself time to spend with God BEFORE the day started, not when it ended. It also meant was going to bed earlier giving up my beloved "Friends" watching time.
Know what I've found? I am more ready to take on the day, more prepared to face what it brings, stronger and able to hear the Lord more these days. In just about a month, I've seen a huge difference in the person staring back in the mirror. Plus, I'm doing fine without my "Friends". Trust me, that was a shock to me, too!
Back to dreams...Lysa Terkeurst, the writer of the devotional I read today had these things to say about what she's learned about actively pursing your dreams:
*Rejection from people doesn't mean rejection from God - Use your gifts right where you are to bless others.
*Most overnight success stories are years in the making - Value the daily discipline of faith, hard work, honing your craft and putting in time learning and developing. Take classes. Be mentored. Push through those moments you want to slack off. And do it over and over year after year.
*Be a blessing to others - Don't keep your work to yourself. Find people who could be blessed with your work.
*Expect opposition - And remember to glorify God whether it's a struggle or a success. God uses all things for good.
*Look for the small open doors right in front of you - Actually, dance through that door with great joy because He will always do great things with people willing to be faithful in the small!
Are you dreaming? I am...but I'm tired of just dreaming. I want to start doing my part to make some of those dreams come true. I'm dreaming of writing a book...have been for probably 20 years. This summer I started. 10 chapters are complete and I still find myself doubting my abilities, doubting I can actually see this through to completion, doubting it will be worth anyone's time to read it when it is completed. But, then again, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 plays over again in my head: "But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."
So, I continue to dream...
Just those questions alone can bring more to mind than your heart was ready to process. I know it's true for me. I haven't blogged for three years. Want to know what one of my dreams is? Writing! Ironic, huh?
In this past month I've switched some things up with positive results. I used to wait to spend time with God at the very end of my day and that came with varying results. Either I'd be so exhausted that I'd only muster enough to open up the Bible app on my phone and settle for just a nugget of God's truths that day. Sometimes I'd get my Bible opened then be sidetracked by a nephew getting ready for bed or a whiny dog. Sometimes, I'd forget altogether. None of this made for a strong me.
When the kids started back to school this year, I decided to make a change for myself. Instead of getting up at the same time as always, I set my alarm for 5:00 a.m. allowing myself time to spend with God BEFORE the day started, not when it ended. It also meant was going to bed earlier giving up my beloved "Friends" watching time.
Know what I've found? I am more ready to take on the day, more prepared to face what it brings, stronger and able to hear the Lord more these days. In just about a month, I've seen a huge difference in the person staring back in the mirror. Plus, I'm doing fine without my "Friends". Trust me, that was a shock to me, too!
Back to dreams...Lysa Terkeurst, the writer of the devotional I read today had these things to say about what she's learned about actively pursing your dreams:
*Rejection from people doesn't mean rejection from God - Use your gifts right where you are to bless others.
*Most overnight success stories are years in the making - Value the daily discipline of faith, hard work, honing your craft and putting in time learning and developing. Take classes. Be mentored. Push through those moments you want to slack off. And do it over and over year after year.
*Be a blessing to others - Don't keep your work to yourself. Find people who could be blessed with your work.
*Expect opposition - And remember to glorify God whether it's a struggle or a success. God uses all things for good.
*Look for the small open doors right in front of you - Actually, dance through that door with great joy because He will always do great things with people willing to be faithful in the small!
Are you dreaming? I am...but I'm tired of just dreaming. I want to start doing my part to make some of those dreams come true. I'm dreaming of writing a book...have been for probably 20 years. This summer I started. 10 chapters are complete and I still find myself doubting my abilities, doubting I can actually see this through to completion, doubting it will be worth anyone's time to read it when it is completed. But, then again, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 plays over again in my head: "But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."
So, I continue to dream...
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