Introduction
When God made you, He formed your inward parts, and this inward creation doesn’t just include physical structures like bones, ligaments and organs. God also hand-crafted you with natural tendencies, gifts and desires.
For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. Psalm 139:13 (NKJV)
You may be aware of some of the gifts and desires He’s given you, but there are a lot more you haven’t yet discovered. Some are time-released at certain phases in your life. For example, not many boys who are eight or nine years old have a desire to get married, but if you give them a few years, things change!
The fact is that you’ll be discovering new dreams, gifts and desires throughout your life. That being said, you may be pushing these desires out of your awareness. You need to know that God wants you to reawaken those dreams.
For example, you might have had a deep desire to have a family, but if you were hurt in a relationship, you may have pushed that desire down. If you struggled to lose weight in the past, you may have put aside the dream of getting healthy. Or if you went through some really tough times financially, you might have stopped dreaming of financial success.
Know this: whenever God places a desire within you, He also gives you everything you need to fulfill that desire His way. You will still need to put in the time and effort required, but He doesn’t give you a passion for something you have no hope of achieving.
What dreams and desires have you set aside? It’s time to start taking steps toward achieving them. Remember: through Christ, you’re empowered to fulfill your God-given dreams!
Be the Best You
According to Ephesians 2:10, God has prepared paths for you to take. But these paths are not your fate. Fate is the belief that God either wants you rich or poor, sick or healthy, and that’s what you get regardless of your choices. The Bible does not teach us to believe in fate.
For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)
Ecclesiastes 3 teaches us that there’s a time to be born and a time to die, which can sound a lot like fate. However, those can’t be fixed times. If they were, why would Ephesians 6:1–3 say that honouring your parents can increase the length of your life? Several other verses speak of extending your life by following God’s commands and by using wisdom. If you can extend your life, then your life is not fixed.
Instead of fate, the Bible teaches that you have a destiny you can choose to follow. God prepared best-case scenarios for you that incorporate the unique gifts and desires He built into you. If you choose these paths, they lead to the most exciting and productive life possible.
Will you still go through tough times if you follow God’s paths? Absolutely. Life will always have its challenges. But Jesus taught us in Matthew 7:24–27 that, if we build our lives on the solid foundation of Jesus and God’s Word, storms may blow, but we won’t be shaken.
God knows what He’s doing. He doesn’t make mistakes. The gifts and passions He has placed within you are for a purpose. Keep following His paths by building your relationship with Him and by becoming the most authentic you that you can be.
Your Dreams Lead To Your Destiny
Have you picked up the idea that following Jesus is difficult and will make you miserable? Many Christians have the misbelief that they’re supposed to do what they hate doing to suffer for Jesus. They think that’s what it takes to be a good, obedient Christian.
Actually, God wants you to do what He has gifted you for and what you’re excited about! Do you know why? Because He created you for it! Besides, you are much more effective at doing what you’re good at because you have fun doing it.!
Doesn’t this just make sense? If you were an inventor, would you create something that was perfectly suited for one function, but then tell people to use it for something entirely different? Would you invent a new kind of food processor and then try to convince people to use it as a toaster? No, you would want your invention to do what you designed it to do because that’s how it would function best.
Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 (NKJV)
Christians often struggle to believe that God wants them to have what they desire because they’ve learned to paint all desires with the same brush. It’s true that God doesn’t want us to act on selfish ambitions. However, Psalm 37:4 says that God will give us the desires of our hearts. God is not against us having desires!
You’ll still need to take on new challenges, make sacrifices, work hard and do things you dislike. That’s just part of life. But instead of thinking you need to suffer intentionally for Jesus, thank God for the dreams, passions and desires within you. Put Him first and don’t be afraid to go after your dreams with Him!
Dream Of More
When you talk about your vision for the future, you may describe your career goals. While this is great, a successful career can’t be your only dream or you’ll sacrifice everything else to get it.
You need a dream for every area of life. In fact, every one of God’s promises for you as a believer provides the basis for something you can dream about.
For example, you are promised health, so do you have a dream for great physical and mental health? If you’re struggling with a health issue, you may have given up on that dream, but it’s time to wake it up again. Don’t let a fear of disappointment stop you from dreaming.
I understand you can’t control everything that happens to you, but life isn’t something that you just have to get through or endure. Jesus came so you could have a great life (John 10:10)!
Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams]... Ephesians 3:20 (AMPC)
Using God’s promises as your guideline, dream again for great health. Dream of having plenty of strength, stamina and energy. Dream of clear thinking and a great memory. Dream of being able to walk, run and dance pain-free.
Don’t let go of your dream for a long, healthy life. Keep working toward it. Put action to your faith and look forward to an awesome future because, through His power at work in you, God is able to carry out His promises far beyond your highest hopes and dreams!
Dream Of God’s Promises
When you think about your future, what comes to mind?
There is great power in picturing the life of your dreams, and I’m not just talking about your career or financial situation. Picture a great future in those areas for sure, but what about having a dream for your relationships?
If you’re married, do you still have great expectations for your life together? Before you were married, you probably dreamed of what your life would be like as a couple. But maybe you’ve been married a while, and you’ve let that dream die. Even after all the sleepless nights, painful misunderstandings, fights and disappointments, you can still develop a vision of an awesome relationship with your spouse that will just keep getting better and better.
If you’re single and you’ve lost sight of the dream of finding someone special, don’t listen to all the nay-sayers who say that there are no good ones left. Of the billions on this planet, there are no options? Come on! If it’s your dream, get back to believing and working toward it.
If you’re a parent, do you dream of a family that laughs and loves each other in all seasons of life? What is your dream for your kids? Don’t try to control them, but dream that they will have great marriages and finances, fulfilling lives, and that they’ll have a passion to know God and be part of a great church!
Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” Mark 9:23 (NKJV)
Get back to developing dreams based on the promises that you find all through God’s Word. Then put action to your faith. Through Christ, you’re empowered to make those dreams happen.
Dream to Serve
God has given you dreams and desires in life, but you need to realize something very important. The pinnacle of success, when it comes to God’s call on your life, is not necessarily to be “number one.”
"The greatest among you must be a servant. But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted." Matthew 23:11–12 (NLT)
We tend to look up to people who rise to the top all on their own, and we admire movie heroes who save the day Lone Ranger-style. We think that success means getting the credit, being the best and doing it alone.
As a result, we’ve created a culture where we don’t feel we’re fulfilling our dreams unless we’re at the top. Instead of working cooperatively, we compete with others. We think that being part of a team isn’t that impressive. Instead we think we need to strike out on our own to really be successful.
The problem with this kind of thinking is it doesn’t reflect God’s heart. Jesus taught us that the greatest among us are the servants of all. In other words, the pinnacle of success is to serve others with the gifts and dreams God has placed within you.
Accolades are great, but I’m challenging you to be more servant-minded and team-focused. You can impact people and change lives with the gifts God has given you. If you can’t see how your gifts could help others right away, take some time with it—because every one of us has the potential to better the lives of others in some way.
Beliefs Help or Hinder Your Dreams
Do you know what limits you from achieving your dreams more than anything? It’s your beliefs.
To develop beliefs that empower your dreams, you need to base them on the truth.
Jesus said that He is “the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6, NLT). In other words, when you base your beliefs on Jesus’ teachings and God's Word, those beliefs empower you to achieve the dreams God has placed in your heart.
And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 8:32 (NKJV)
Knowing this truth makes you free to do what? It frees you to realize those God-given dreams!
When I was young, somehow I picked up the idea that if I agreed to follow God’s plans for my life, I’d have to do what I hated doing for the rest of my days. Boy, am I ever glad that God helped me to work out that misbelief, because serving Him has been the most awesome, exciting privilege of my life!
How do you set out to challenge the beliefs that stand in the way of God’s destiny for your life? You turn to His Word! For me, understanding that God wants to give me the desires of my heart (Psalm 37:4) and joy unspeakable (1 Peter 1:8), and that His plans for me are all good (Jeremiah 29:11), challenged my misbeliefs. God wants us to love life and see good days (1 Peter 3:10)!
You have a destiny out there waiting for you. Start believing the best is yet to come!
Conclusion
I hope you've begun to dream again for your future! When you look ahead, picture a better life for your family, more financial stability or improved health and relationships.
These are all great things to dream for in life, but let me tell you about the best dream of all. Paul spoke of this dream in Philippians 3:7–1, saying that his greatest desire was to know God (v. 8).
Have you developed a passionate desire to know God yourself? You need to know that this desire is one you can increase intentionally. You can dream of looking forward to your time with God.
Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Philippians 3:8 (NLT)
We develop habits by doing the things we want to change. So grab your Bible, take a seat in a comfortable place in your home and create a habit of quiet time with God. If you love nature, take a walk on your favourite path and embrace His presence as you go.
Begin to talk with God all throughout your day—as you get ready in the morning or go to bed at night, and every time in between. Take a few minutes out of your coffee break at work to get guidance and wisdom from Him and develop an awareness of His presence and love.
John 10:3 (NLT) says, “the sheep recognize his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”
You can learn to hear from God, but don’t get hung up on hearing Him audibly. The Bible teaches that God speaks to us in our spirits.
A sense of guidance from God comes when you know His voice and understand His leading for your life. Reading His Word each day and understanding how to pray effectively will bring a closeness to your relationship with Him. Then, you'll achieve the best dream of all—knowing Him!
