I’m completely convinced that our daring dreams are never just for us- for our own enjoyment and personal gratification. Our dreams are meant to inspire, encourage, uplift, challenge, and equip other people.
Yes, we receive benefit from the living out of our daring dreams.
Yes, we grow and rejoice as our dreams see life.
Yes, there’s nothing more exciting than actually living what henceforth we only imagined.
But those outcomes are just too small.
If daring dreams are just for our benefit are they really worth dreaming?
Its only as we give our dreams away with an open hand and a willing heart that we see the true power of our unique, God-ordained gift of dreaming.
Hannah was a woman who understood that principle.
Hannah had a big dream.
A life-changing dream.
A virtually impossible, “Never gonna happen,” dream.
We read about her passionate dreaming in I Samuel Chapter one.
In verses 2, and 5, and 6, and 7 we read of Hannah’s great sorrow. She sorrowed because the one thing she dreamed about constantly, her one over-riding passion of life was Just.Not.Happening.
Ever been there?
Have you ever wanted your dream to become a reality so badly that you could taste it? So desperately that it consumed your thoughts and haunted your dreams?
That’s where Hannah was living. She wanted a child, a son to be specific, and she was restless and unsatisfied, fearing that the dream would never come to pass.
She wept, and fasted, and prayed, and mourned, and waited…and waited…and waited.
But then, God…
Isn’t that the way it always works? When God enters the picture all things change.
In verses 19 and 20 we see how God entered the scene to change Hannah’s dream from an unfulfilled and bitter loss to a joyous and celebrated victory.
Yes, after years of waiting, Hannah’s dream came true!
A baby! And not just any baby… A boy baby! Her joy and her dream had finally become her reality.
But then, Hannah did something that completely blows my mind. She took that much beloved baby, that fruition of her year-after-year dream, and she gave him back to the Lord.
She didn’t hold onto her dream with both hands.
She didn’t claim her dream as her own.
She didn’t pamper herself and reward herself for all the years of waiting.
No, she took the physical outworking of her dream, the boy Samuel, and put him in a place where he could grow, mature in wisdom, and eventually, bless and lead others.
Hannah wasn’t selfish with her dream; she was generous and others-oriented.
I don’t know about you, but that’s convicting to me.
I can think of lots of good reasons to just clutch my dreams to my chest and claim them as my own…
They’re not ready for anyone else to see…
They wouldn’t be welcomed anyway…
They’re not as good as everyone else’s dreams.
Really, all my excuses can be summed up in one self-centered sentence.
My Dreams Belong To Me!
I tried all those excuses this week. Some rough “talking points” I sent to our publicist ended up published on a prominent person’s blog site.
The simple explanation of the moment I found this out can be summed up in two words…I freaked!
They weren’t ready to be seen…
They weren’t what anyone would want…
They weren’t good enough (heck, I hadn’t even proofread them).
Simply put…
They Were Mine!
I threw myself a full-blown, whining, pity-party. Sadly, no one else showed up…
But then, I began to receive comments. Encouraging notes from others who feel the same, but who have been hesitant to voice their opinion. Thankful notes from new parents who find themselves knee-deep in the decision making process. “Keep-it-up” emails from friends and strangers.
Admittedly, I’m a slow learner, but I’m starting to get it.
When I tenaciously cling to my own dreams and claim them as my personal property, I rob those dreams of their power. Kept in their own little “Megan Storehouse” my dreams are of no value to others.
But when I’m willing to let go…
When I don’t worry about perfection, or objection, or scrutinization my dreams have limitless power and potential.
Dreams held captive will eventually lose their luster.
Dreams set free and generously shared with others will grow and flourish and hopefully, produce other equally powerful dreams.
Don’t be afraid to share your daring dreams. In truth, they will always belong to you, but as you generously spread your dreams abroad, others will be encouraged and you will be blessed in the process.
Keep dreaming,
Megan
Do you have a daring dream that you are tenaciously claiming as your own? Let it go and watch it grow!
Megan Scheibner 