We consistently note that young children are dreamers! Young adults are quieter and more reserved. They are hesitant to share and seem shy or embarrassed to announce their dreams openly. Adults are a mixed bag. Sometimes, we get the ones who don’t dream at all for themselves, and other times we meet those who are still dreaming machines.

What has to occur to turn the free, young-spirited dreamer into the reserved teen / young adult, and finally the pessimistic adult? What point in our lives are our dreams suppressed? I am going to draw from the Bible to suggest three life events that often suppress our ability to dream: fear, previous failures, and loss or devastation.

• Fear – Fear will always keep you from walking in total freedom. Harboring fear will cause you to trust in things and circumstances, rather than God.
• Failure – Failure is a dream killer. Feelings of failure will prevent you from ever trying anything new.
• Loss/Devastation – Devastating circumstances limit your ability to observe with faith and dream God’s dreams! Loss and devastation can prevent progress. Living in the past, prevents us from being aware of God’s work today.

If it’s not a past full of fear, failure, or loss that is keeping you from being a dream lifter, it could be a pessimistic pattern that prevents you from opening your life to God’s dreams for you. Sometimes we get stuck in a negative mind-set because of our own internal assessment, and other times, we are influenced by the opinions of others.

The root of a negative mind-set about your dreams is usually the desire to please other people. Man’s opinion is often more valued than God’s. When we reason our own way out of doing something that God has told us to do, we value our own discernment more than we trust God’s commands.

But if we replace negative thoughts with God’s truth, we can become filled with His dreams for us. When we partner with Him, He can achieve more than we could ever imagine. Trust that God’s wisdom is higher than your own. It’s not too late. Keep pressing through the pages. Let God stir you and help you realize you are worthy to do what He’s called you to! Release past failures, fears, and despair. Give it all to God. Today. Listen to God, and you can become a dream lifter!

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
-Philippians 3:13-14