Goals, Aspirations, and Dreams: Where Will They Take You?

Think for a moment about the following…

·         To dance on stage.

·         To make a million dollars

·         To have a family of my own

·         To walk on my own

These are all good goals.  Some of these could be considered aspirations, and still others can be dreams.   It all depends on where they carry you in life.   It also depends on your circumstances and how you arrived at this conclusion.

Let’s look at them again…

·         To dance on stage.  Maybe this person started out taking lessons at the age of 2.  It could have been ballet, jazz or tap.  It does not matter and at the age of 12, she decided that dance is where she wants to be.  So she studied hard at her craft, got a few lead roles, and at the age of 18, she got a scholarship to study dance further.  Let me stop right there for the moment.

·         To make a million dollars.   What drove this person to this state?  Maybe they grew up poor and saw their parents struggling to make ends meet.  Their father worked 2 or 3 jobs just to put food on the table while their mom did an occasional temp job.  That person decided that when they grow up, they were never putting their spouse and child through that situation.  Again, I am stopping for the moment.

·         To have a family of my own.   This person was an orphan and went from foster parent to foster parent only to get the wrong end of the stick.  They question themselves about why are they are not adoptable, because they see younger children being adopted.  Another situation could be that they are not able to have children and so far they are not able to get married, and at the age of 35, they wonder if that will ever happen.

·         To walk on their own.   This one is a little tougher.  Perhaps this is a person who was in a car accident and was paralyzed from the waist down.   Doctors have explained over and over again that walking is impossible now.  Still another situation could be a child who was born with cerebral palsy, and cannot run and play like the other children.  They wonder if they will ever be able to play like a normal child.

There is a difference between a dream and an impossible dream in man’s eye, but God see it differently for nothing to impossible with God.   If you look towards Him, He will see to your needs and help you towards those goals.  Let look once more at these examples:

·         To dance on stage-After graduating from college and dancing for several companies, this person was injured during a high point of her career.   A torn ligament in her right leg.   Soon after recovery, the company she danced with said that she was too old to dance.  What does she do?  She did not take up a second major in case something happened during her dancing career.   So after some prayer, she decided to take some business courses, and opened up a dance studio with the money she saved up for a rainy day.  This person took in some students, included some under-privilege students.   One day, she met with an investor.  

·         This investor also had a past.  After seeing his family struggle during his childhood, he was smart enough to get out to get a scholarship to go to college, and learn how to work in finance.  After graduation, he too got a good job, and was able to invest in the stock market and several housing projects, including taking over the building where his parents lived before they died.   The summer of 2008 came, and he found himself struggling after the recession hit.  He too found himself praying to God, which lead him to invest in the dance studio owned by the former dancer.   The two fell in love, and found out that they could not conceive, and struggled with this.   They prayed to God and this led them to adoption.  They decided to adopt special needs children, and they adopted a healthy 10 year old,

·         Who wondered not only if she will ever be adopted, but also if she will ever be able to walk, run, and play like normal children.   So, the couple and their new daughter talked to doctor after doctor, until they were able to find one who was willing to give them hope and understanding about her situation.   The couple actually found out their daughter had been abused as a baby, and through therapy she was able to do most things that normal children do.

Now miracles happen every day, but sometimes, if you want things to happen, you may need to turn to someone who can see your way through it.  It may take some time, but if God says yes, it will happen in His own time, for his time is not like ours.   We want things to happen yesterday, and humans are by nature are impatient people.  It also takes some action.  

Consider this:  If it wasn’t for the dancer being persistent and patient with her career, she could have not gotten that scholarship, which led to her dream of being on stage.   What you did not know was she was also wondering if she would ever have a family of her own.  At the age of 35, she met the investor.  If it wasn’t for the recession which caused this man to lose a million dollars, he would not have invested in the dance studio.   What you did not know was he promised himself and God that he would not work 2 or 3 jobs like his father, who did not believe in the power of prayer.  He did not know that he was also sterile, which he found out only after he married the owner of the studio.   They prayed for a baby, but got a child instead.   What you do not know was the couple tried for 5 years to have a baby and turned to adoption after doctors told them that it was impossible to try further.   This led them to the 10 year old girl who thought she was unadoptable, and unable to play like normal children.   This led to the couple finding out that their child was abused as a baby, by 2 sets of foster parents.  The baby failed to thrive at that point. It was through much prayer and patience that led them to find the root of her problem, and getting help where needed.

No matter what your problems are, or how big your dreams and goals get, God is there for the asking.  He does not have to do it, but He does because He cares for us and He loves us, for we are His children.  He will do it, but there is that time where it cannot be done, because you have not thought it through long enough.  So to ask for a million dollars depends on what you are going to do with it, asking for a dance career is the same concept.  He does not want you to blow it by gambling nor does He wants you to blow it by dancing in a strip club.  Same thing, if He thinks you will abuse a child, after have they gone through years of abuse, or abusing a spouse.  So these requests could have ended with a “no” from God.  

When it is all said and done, He also wants you to thank Him and worship Him too.   Tell others of the miracles that have happened to you, and let them know that you are His child.