dreams, purpose

When You’re Afraid to Dream

When You are Afraid to Dream

I’ve always been a proponent of dreams.

Not the kind that you have while you sleep, but the kind found in the fourth definition of Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary:

  • a strongly desired goal or purpose.

When you define “dream” that way, who can live without such a thing? We spend the last week of December every year wracking our brains for “one words” and resolutions and . . . goals. So,we know goals are important, but dreams are more than goals according to Webster. Dreams involve a strong desire. 

I’ve felt passionate about helping people excavate the dreams forgotten, because one warm March day twenty years ago, I sat on a beautiful beach, my life full of blessings. It should’ve been a glorious day, but I sat there empty, tired, and dreamless. Life had taken over and my dreams were MIA– lost in the wonderful chaos of marriage and children.

That day I realized how much we need dreams beyond our beach or wherever God has placed us. 

That day I surrendered my tears, confessed my restlessness, and trusted that as I worshiped the Creator who had set boundary lines on the shore against the waves, the One who numbered the grains of sand under my feet, and the One who knew me better than I knew myself–that One would one day restore my dreams.

It wasn’t immediate. But little but little the dreams resurfaced and lived out. One. At. A. Time.

DREAM

I’ve never been afraid to dream until now.

I’ve been too lost in the chaos of life to catch those winged desires and bottle them up for another day. But now that I’ve experienced those dreams come true, and in all honesty, dreams that at one time seemed too grand to imagine (like writing a book or two), I find myself afraid to dream beyond that dream.

So, here I am confessing my fear and wondering if any of you are afraid to dream too.

It’s not that we’re afraid of the dream. We’re afraid to dream.

But dreams and purpose go hand in hand. So, what do we do when we are afraid to dream?

Well, this is what I’m going to do:

  • Confess my fear  to the Lord and friends. (I just did that.)
  • Ask the Lord to reveal what the root of the fear is.
  • Intentionally worship the Lord every day. 
  • Be faithful to what the Lord has for me now.
  • Wait on Him for His dream.

 

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2Cor. 12:9 NIV).

Thank goodness.

Are you afraid to dream? Please leave a comment and I’ll be praying for you too. We’ll walk this journey together.

 

Finding Purpose in Dreams,

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5 Comments

  1. I had a dream when I was young and it was to be a Mother. God Blessed me 3 times with wonderful children that are all grown. Now I am blessed to be a grandmother, but do not live close to my grandchildren. I want to dream big, no bigger. I know God equips the called, that he does not call the equipped. I often feel ill-equipped or not educated enough to fulfillI a new dream. I have been praying God will place a new dream on my heart and I will have trust and faith to moved forward rather than fear.

    1. Marsha, I understand! I will be praying for you. Simply ask for new dreams and purposes and intentionally worship Him throughout your day. The dreams will come in His time. And remember that His economy is not the same as ours. Thanks for sharing!

  2. […] few weeks ago I wrote about being afraid to dream.  I had realized that I didn’t have any dreams in my queue. Which is very unlike this […]

  3. I am a dreamer. Sometimes, I push those dreams aside to do the tasks at hand. I have started making room to dream and to listen for God’s leading. As always, thank you for your encouraging words!

    1. Go, Valerie, Go! Dream, girl, Dream!! I’m excited for you to start dreaming (and writing) again! I will be praying.

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