Free to DREAM!

It seems like I have been spending a lot of time during the recent weeks reminiscing over Piper’s and my time at Chico State in the early 1970’s.  I am not sure what sparks my journeys down the different seasons of my life. It might be an old photo I come upon, or a memory that flashes across my thoughts when I see couples engaged in activities that remind me of Piper and I, or when I am studying my Bible and glance upon a personal note in the margins that, depending on whose Bible I am using, either Piper or I wrote down in past studies.

But lately, its been many of the activities and experiences that we enjoyed while away from home, attending college and living in the dorms.  In many respects it was a training time for our upcoming marriage.  While we lived in separate dorms, we were totally on our own and functioned in most respects like a married couple.  We depended on each other, planned together, prayed together, played together and maybe most importantly, began to DREAM together about our future married life and the things that we wanted to accomplish… about the mark we wanted to make as adults, as husband and wife in the world we desired to create around us.

I mentioned in a recent blog post of how Piper and I initiated our habit of taking regular walks together throughout our marriage, while living in Chico.  Besides many other things, those walks were where we really started to DREAM together.  Piper and I were both DREAMERS and it seemed like there was no limitations, no DREAM too far out, nor anything that could stand in our way to fulfill those DREAMS.

We were both raised by wonderful parents and enjoyed terrific childhoods… and while our folks had DREAMS… in many instances, the ones that pushed the accepted financial norms were simply words and/or ideas that never got passed the talk stage.  But Piper and I… well… we were different than the rest of our immediate families.  We both felt like the Lord had given us and our marriage a “Pioneering Spirit,” and the more of God’s Word that we began to study and establish in our hearts, the more we aligned ourselves with Paul’s words in Philippians 4:13 when he told the church that,

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” And then a few verses down, “And my God will supply all your need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:13 & 19 EMTV)

And while our time at Chico State was spent in the exploration of both scholastic and real-life hypothesis, practical experience and DREAMING, our marriage was even better!  As we walked hand in hand across the foggy bluffs overlooking the beauty of the Pacific Ocean at Sea Ranch California and then a few days later under the towering Redwoods at Richardson Grove State Park on our honeymoon, we found ourselves DREAMING and then beginning to pray and plan concerning how we would accomplish those “divinely suggested DREAMS*” that we felt were “supernatural impressions”* upon our hearts.

In Genesis 37:19 we read about the story of a well-known DREAMER named Joseph and his brother’s response to his divinely led visions.  To put it mildly, Joseph’s DREAMS irritated his brothers to no end and they finally got to the point when opportunity presented itself and said to each other;

"Look, here comes that master DREAMER!  Let's kill him, throw him into one of the cisterns, and say that a wild animal has eaten him. Then we'll see what happens to his DREAMS." (Genesis 37:19-20 – God’s Word ©)

Now Joseph was a young man with many gifts and talents, but knowing when to keep his mouth shut was not one of them!  Through the years, Piper and I learned, at times the hard way… although not to the extent of people wanting to kill us… that there were people who we could talk to about our DREAMS and others we could not.

To some people, DREAMS are nothing but foolish fantasies and not attainable in “real life.”  To others they can cause anger, fear and jealousy… especially when they see the hard work, persecution and times of financial strain experienced by the faith-filled and committed DREAMER, come to a successful conclusion.

The things that may be seen as foolishness, unwarranted chance and a waste of time, energy and money to some, are seen to those of us “Pioneers” as exciting and doable challenges when you closely follow the leadings of God through that “small-still-voice” on the inside and the Word of God… which should always agree!

I feel that people need to take the time to understand and except people who might think or act differently than they do.  In my experience in both secular and sacred management and leadership, I’ve learned that God has created three major types of individuals.  The “TRAILBLAZERS” or innovator who discovers new lands, and makes “a new track through wild country.”**

The ”PIONEERS” like Piper and I, who boldly go into the new areas opened up by the Trailblazer and take the raw and undeveloped scenery and begin to fashioned it into a beautiful new landscape and area of study and development.  And then the “SETTLERS” who follow the Pioneers (who may have since left to work new lands and new possibilities) who “Settle In” to the newly opened and establish areas and work to fully develop, grow and manage the long-range future of the land, organization, church, city and/or field of secular or sacred work or discovery.

You know, to be perfectly clear here, all three of these types of people can be DREAMERS.  They just have different kinds of DREAMS that fuel, stretch and lead the course of their existence within their particular type or character of life that God has given them.  One’s type or characteristic of life is not better than another… it is just different!  And one can, and in my perspective, should be free to DREAM no matter what their mindset is, and not be worried about what someone else thinks about their DREAM.

Now it is also good to understand that there are different kinds of DREAMS as well… but we’ll get into that distinction in our next post!  So, until then… if you haven’t done so before… take the time to step away from the “I Can’t Mentality” and allow yourself the luxury of DREAMING the big DREAM. 

Imagine what it would be like if the impossibilities, road-blocks, unavailability of resources, and the discouragement and criticisms of others weren’t there.  What if you really could:

“Do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” And know without a doubt that  “God will supply all your need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

What then… would you DREAM… and how would you go about accomplishing your DREAMS?  Pretty exciting right? 

Have a terrific rest of your week, start DREAMING and as you do, keep EXPECTING God’s BEST!

 

 

*Thayer’s and Mounce’s definition of the Greek word translated “Dreamer” in Genesis 37:19

**Oxford Online Dictionaries