Dreams Are Meant For Coming True

I started creating a dream book a few years ago, filled with the dreams and the goals that I have for my life. Some of those dreams have been fulfilled and others fill the pages, still waiting to happen someday, Lord willing.

Most important to me, is to keep God at the very center of my life. I want to wake up every morning and have Him as my focus of the day.

I also want to make a good impact on this world. I want to be the hands and feet of Jesus here on this earth. I want to inspire, to motivate and to encourage other people. I want my life to count towards changing this world and making it a better place. I am so inspired by ordinary people who have lived extraordinary lives. People who have risen to the challenges that came their way and have found good treasures out of the debris of broken circumstances. People like:

Anne Frank

Walt Disney

The Wright Brothers

Thomas Edison

Bethany Hamilton

Scott Hamilton

People who did not let challenges get in their way. People who were regular people like you and me who refused to give up. Who refused to let a roadblock keep them from pushing through and finding another route. People who had the tenacity to follow their heart's calling and to not give up. I want to live with that kind of attitude. I want my life to count for something bigger than me.

I love this quote by Bob Pierce that says, "Don't fail to do something just because you can't do everything." Years ago, in a training class, I was told a story about a man who was walking along the beach and was surrounded by hundreds of starfish all around him. He bent down to pick one up, looked at it and then threw it out into the ocean. He bent down to pick up another one and repeated the same action, throwing it back into the ocean.

His friend jogged up next to him and asked, "What on earth are you doing?" The man bent down, repeating the same action as before of throwing another starfish into the ocean and said, "I'm throwing these starfish back into the ocean. If I don't, they'll die." His friend stood there, looking incredulously at him and said, "Well...that's impossible! There's too many of them to save! You can't rescue every single one of them."

The man kept throwing starfish into the ocean and said, "No, that's true. I can't rescue them all." He picked up another starfish and threw it into the ocean. "But to that one, it matters."

Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by the problems in the world. The sick, the hurt, the broken, the dying, the starving. I want to help out each and every one of them. I want to wipe the tears, heal the hurts, feed the empty bellies. I may not be able to help everyone, but just because I can't do everything, I don't want that to keep me from doing something.

Of course, one of the ways of helping other people out is following the purpose that God has placed inside my heart. For years and years, I'd searched for what my life calling was. I knew that my purpose here on this earth was to honor and glorify God in my life. But what avenue did He want to use to reach other people? What giftings did He put into my life that could be used by His hands to touch people's lives?

I wrestled for years (about 10 years!) about what I was supposed to do. I was certain that I would be an animator, but tried my hand at it and did not like the tedious drawing of picture after picture. I tried life drawing, interior design, acting, group leadership and painting. And while each one was enjoyable to a certain extent, none of them provided that sense of satisfaction that I was searching for. Nothing quite "clicked." Until photography, that is! Picking up a digital camera was like magic in my hands...and when I learned Photoshop, I felt like some sort of secret magician and I was hooked! : )

But something still did not seem right. Photography was fun. But what else? What purpose did God want to use it for? I truly believe that He puts gifts and talents into our lives to use them for some good here on earth. Well, what was His purpose in using my gifts?

I started to pray and write about it while I was sitting in a mall's food court over lunch and almost lept out of my seat! Something jumped out at me and I started saying, "Thank You God! I know why You want me to do this!" I felt it so impressed on my heart that one of His missions is to drawer people closer together and closer to Him. With the heart of 1 Corinthians 13 beating in my soul about loving other people...that's what I feel my photography is supposed to accomplish: To help people see those in their lives as beautiful creations, handmade by God and breathed to life by His creativity and love. I want people to value those in their lives and to value God for creating them. I want to inspire people to hold their loved ones closer more dear. I want them to thank God for blessing their lives with such wonderful people to share it with.

My dream book includes those big goals that are too lofty for me to achieve on my own without God's power causing it to happen. But I also included those small, everyday goals that I always daydream about. Things like getting organized and having my paperwork and closet in control and in order. I work best in a neat and clean environment. It helps me to stay more focused. I'm definitely more of a "Martha" than I am a "Mary" (referring to the Bible characters).

Whether following a big dream or a little dream, I want to follow and pursue something that's bigger than myself. I want to say at the end of my life that I spent my life for God, on God and on other people. I want to live with God's Kingdom in mind and see His "big picture."

Some people might call me fanatical for talking about my faith so much. Yet...have you ever been in love? When you are, you can't help but think about that person and talk about him or her. Why should it be any different with God? He is my passion and the One that my heart loves the most. : )

Whatever dreams I have for my life, I feel a deep sense of calling to use it for something bigger than what's around me.

What dreams are beating there inside your own heart? What would you do if you had all the talent, energy, everything to accomplish them? What would you choose to do? What would you willingly do for free because you love it so much? I'd love to hear! : )!