I used to wonder… Am I filled with dreams or just
dripping with desire?
Before I could even begin to think about, plan for, and pray
over my dreams there were questions I desperately needed to answer.
What were my
dreams…Really?
How could I separate what
I was truly and uniquely equipped to accomplish from those things that I.Just.Really.Want.To.Do!
Here’s what I discovered. The difference between life
changing, big-picture dreams and time-consuming desires was found in my heart.
The difference between dreams and desires was a simple as the difference
between an outward focus and an inward concentration. By checking my heartbeat
I found the answers to my questions. Here’s what I discovered…
Dreams are solution oriented.
Dreams are needs focused.
Dreams live and thrive as they are offered, extended, and
generously shared with others!
Dreams make a difference. A difference to someone else… Not
just to me
Desires on the other hand feed the ugly and always hungry ME monster that lives in my heart. Desires
put the focus on self and the onus on others to notice, commend, and praise ME for what I’m doing, thinking,
producing, presenting… Being.
Desires, when placed at the center of my focus, make me a
selfish and self-centered wife, mother, and friend. I’m just not very nice…
Desires drain me of
the energy I need to love, laugh, and truly enjoy life.
Desires can make me
their slave!
But there’s another difference that sets dreams apart from
desires. That difference is found in the “staying power,” the urgency of our
big picture dreams.
Let me explain. For years, I would have told you that one of
my “dreams” was to be trim and healthy. Ok, let me be honest…Forget trim and healthy, I wanted to be
skinny and sexy! That “dream” has
led me to diet after diet and exercise after exercise. I’ve spent hours looking
in the mirror and critiquing what I saw.
I’m a harsh critic…
I’ve never been totally pleased with the results and that
“dream” has certainly dominated too much of my time and thought life.
It’s made me cranky, easily offended, and never content.
It’s turned family outings into pity parties and times of sweet fellowship into
calorie counting catastrophes.
The skinny, sexy
“dream” has shackled and handcuffed me…
Sometimes…
There are other times, that given the right opportunity, the
right temptation, that “dream” can slip away as quickly as you can say Funnel Cake. Yep, offer me some yummy,
crispy, sweet fried dough with powdered sugar on top and that “dream” just
doesn’t seem so important anymore.
I’m ashamed to admit that crispy bacon can have the same effect on me…
I can squelch the “dream” and turn it into, “I’ll get around
to it sometime.”
I conveniently “forget” that thinness is my “dream” and
delegate it to the rank of a fleeting thought, a no-big-deal issue in the bigger
scheme of my life. I momentarily put it where it really belongs, but not for
the right reasons.
Not so with true, big-picture dreams. Dreams don’t have a
statute of limitations. I can’t just put my dreams aside for a while.
They’re with me
wherever I go.
They’re in my thoughts
wherever I am.
They’re dear to my
heart and always in the back of my mind.
Yep, there they are… Hovering in every conversation, every
circumstance, and every relationship. Those big-idea dreams shape my choices
and fill my thoughts.
They refuse to be put aside!
My dreams aren’t my master; they’re my friends.
Learning to differentiate between desires and dreams has
become vitally important to me. I’m tired of wasting my life and my time on those
things that only benefit me; those things that elevate self; too often at the
expense of those I love.
Those things that rob me of joy, contentment, and peace.
Uncontrolled, my desires have the potential to become strict
taskmasters requiring more time, energy, and emotion than I ever intended to
spend.
Those self-centered desires have got to go!
And, when they’re gone, I’ll have room for the real dreams
to grow and thrive. I’ll see clearly what makes my dreams unique. What make my
dreams my own.
I’ll be free to pursue my dreams with undivided purpose and
unfettered commitment.
No more dripping with
desire for me…I’m ready to be dazzled by my big-picture dreams. How about you?
Megan
What do you think? Do you have desires that are tying you
down and robbing you of the time, energy, and emotion you need to pursue your
big-picture dreams. If so, what will you do about it?
Megan Scheibner 