Be Sure Of The Dream You Are Following

One of our friends, Lauren Rice, wrote an inspiring blog post. I got permission to post it here. Enjoy!:)

Jeremiah 29:8-10, “For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; let not your prophets and your diviners, that be in the midst of you deceive you, neither hearken to your dreams which ye caused to be dreamed. For they prophesy falsely unto you in my name: I have not sent them, saith the LORD. For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.”

In this chapter of Jeremiah, the children of Israel are facing dark times. Because of their sin, God had allowed them to be taken captive by Babylon. Imagine how willing they were to accept the dreams and visions of false prophets who told them that they would be going home before they knew it. “Don’t get settled here, because we’re going home tomorrow,” they said. That was a sweet dream, but that was not God’s vision for His people. So God sent Jeremiah to write a letter to the people of Israel saying that God had other plans. “Build houses, plant gardens, get married and have kids,” God said through Jeremiah’s letter. “Because Babylon is your new home for the next 70 years!” Now that vision was a little different from the one the false prophets had promised the people!

Sometimes we are in the same spot as the people of Israel were in this chapter. As young people, we have big dreams. Yet, just as the people of Israel, we must make sure we know whose dreams they are before we act on them. Are they God’s dreams for our life or are they our own dreams only? Sometimes we have good dreams for our life–even spiritual ones. Maybe our dream is to be a missionary. The key to knowing the author of our dreams-whether they are being a missionary, an entrepreneur or a stay-at-home-mom-is full surrender to God and His will. Establishing a relationship with God is essential to knowing His dream for our life.

In the big, future things, God can answer our prayers by opening and closing doors of opportunity, and especially by using godly parents and authorities in our lives who direct and advise us. When faced with a strong desire that we’re not sure about, we should ask God about our dreams. “Dear God, I believe You’ve given me an ability in ______ area, and I want to use this for You. I surrender my life to You and desire to know Your will. Is this a part of Your plan? If not, please take this desire out of my heart and replace it with Your dream for my life. If this is a part of Your dream for my life, please show me how I can cultivate it and use it for you. Amen.” God will reveal His dream for us if we ask, because He wants us to know!

In the little, every-day things, God’s vision for our life is usually quite obvious. For instance, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” (Ephesians 6:1); “. . . whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 7:12); “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33).

We must make sure the dreams we are following are not just “the dreams that ye have caused to be dreamed . . .”, but the dreams that God has given us. By doing what we know to be right today, and asking God about the future, we can always be in tune with God’s dream for our life. As Evangelist Wil Rice IV (my dad) once said, “Be sure of the dream you are following, then take a step.”
Let us glimpse God’s dream, and then go all out for it!

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