Welcome to Facets of Faith! This month we are pulling back the curtain to offer a peek inside our lives. Everyone has dreams, things they want to do or experience or accomplish and we’re no different. So we decided to answer the question what do you dream about? and Tracy and Jen have already shared. Be sure to check out what they have to say.
When I was little . . .
I dreamed about being a ballerina. I loved to watch people dance and ballet was an absolute favorite. I took ballet for a bit but my body (and probably discipline) didn’t fit the mold. My dream faded as reality took over and I towered over the other little girls in my class.
A few years later another dream took shape. In 6th grade, I entered the Young Author’s Contest and dreamed of writing stories for others to read. I loved creating characters and situations that required tenacity and resilience, even though I didn’t yet grasp the meaning those two words.
Unlike my short-lived dream of twirling about a stage, this dream of writing didn’t end. In fact, it grew. I wrote stories throughout middle school, processing the world that I engaged in but struggled to understand. In high school I took a creative writing class and, while I struggled to do the assignments, I loved the act of creating.
Writing Held On
Fast forward a few years and the longing to write held on. I entered ministry in my late 20’s and began to exercise my gift of writing for the kids we served. I created original stories of bugs meeting the Master Gardener and going on grand adventures; stories of pups who needed friends and found the ultimate one in Jesus; mysteries that held clues hidden in Scripture; and a secret world that could only be entered through a window. I wrote weekly lessons and teacher devotions. I even did some curriculum work with a couple of publishing houses and had the joy of seeing my name in print.
And yet . . .and yet there was something stirring in me, a longing that wasn’t fully satisfied. I wanted to write and share what was uniquely mine but the words, the story, felt just out of reach —like an itch I couldn’t quite scratch
During this time I married, had kids (though not exactly in that order), became a stepmom, and did the things that most 20-somethings do: went to work, paid the bills, made dinner (most often the frozen -TV kind), cleaned house-ish, hung out with friends . . .all the while wondering if my writing dream would ever come true.
A Different Way
March of 2005 rolled around and that normal, everydayness ended. A fire destroyed my home and my little girl, Emma, died from smoke inhalation. I remember walking through the halls of the hospital as reality settled like a dark and heavy fog.
This. I thought to myself. This is my story. A story I didn’t want nor never expected.
I wonder about that, actually. I wonder how many times we sit and dream and think about our futures, what we want to see happen in our lives. We go about our daily business with plans and ideas and steps to take. As followers of Jesus, we hope and we pray that what we want lines up with what God plans. We trust and try to believe that what we want for our lives is God’s plan as well.
But what if it isn’t? What if the dreams we dream end up looking different than we thought, than what we expected?
For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:9
I think about who God is and to me, this seems consistent with His character, what I read about in His Word. Don’t you think?
A New Perspective
The Israelites knew a Messiah was coming —the One who would rule and rescue them. They looked for a king . . .
For a child is born to us, a son is given to us.The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!.” Isaiah 9:6-7
. . . and instead arrived as a baby.
The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” Luke 2:11-12
He took the lost and broken, and through them spoke hope and truth.
The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus.” Acts 4:13
He took what someone had and multiplied it to feed thousands (John 6).
Then Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up. “There’s a young boy here with five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that with this huge crowd? . . .Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks to God, and distributed them to the people. Afterward he did the same with the fish. And they all ate as much as they wanted. “ John 6:8-9, 11
He used a drunkard to save a small group of people (Noah), a murderer to save a nation (Moses), a prostitute who offered refuge to Israelite spies (Rahab), a widow to restore hope (Ruth), an adulterer to write the Psalms (David) a tax collector to write a Gospel, a a fisherman to build a church (Peter), a former persecutor of Christian to be one of His greatest witnesses (Paul).
I can’t imagine they thought their lives would end up as they did, either.
Surely He can use my broken heart to tell of His goodness and love as my dream to write becomes His gift to heal.
My life is an example to many, because you have been my strength and protection. That is why I can never stop praising you; I declare your glory all day long.” Psalm 71:7-8
What dream might God be using in a different way in your life? Are you willing to allow the shift? Join the conversation by sharing below or over on our Facebook page.
