NorthStar Community Daily Devotional

Day 2 - Wake up and recover your life

Scripture focus: Going through a long line of prophets, God has been addressing our ancestors in different ways for centuries. Recently he spoke to us directly through his Son. By his Son, God created the world in the beginning, and it will all belong to the Son at the end. This Son perfectly mirrors God, and is stamped with God's nature. He holds everything together by what he says—powerful words! Hebrews 1:1-3 (The Message)

We were created to live dreams bigger and bolder than we can ever imagine. Jesus came for us, knowing that we would have to believe in something bigger than ourselves to wake up and live. According to McManus, God gives God-sized dreams to people with God-sized hearts. Part of the way God works in us is to give us a dream. My dreams and longings are one way God whispers to me, getting my attention, spurring me on.

Do you remember the story of Joseph? He was a big dreamer – and his dreams resulted in big trouble. Because Joseph was quite the goof and talked about his dreams in front of his jealous older brothers, he ended up sold into slavery and experienced years of misfortune. Joseph's dreams eventually began to come true. But the process took decades.

Our big dreams may only be achieved after years and years of sacrifice and suffering. But they will never arrive if we give up on them altogether. Some of us have gotten more comfortable with security than sacrifice. Why risk what we have on the chance that a bigger dream might be possible?

Frankly, I sometimes worry that dreaming is risky business. My mind toggles between trying to be satisfied with the life I have and wondering if I might be missing the life God planned for me. Can you relate? After reading McManus' book Wide Awake, I've had a new thought. I am coming to believe that I can have daily life satisfaction that includes a commitment to dreaming big. My next hesitation about allowing myself to dream comes when I fearfully consider whether I might be doing – or not doing - something that prevents the fulfillment of God's plans for me. Even with all this fear and trepidation I've decided that whether I'm in the midst of living out my dream life, or still searching for it – there is one response that is always appropriate. I must continue to work on becoming a person of character. Being a person of integrity never goes out of style. We must become the person God desires for us to be in order to fulfill God's dreams for us.

This morning I found myself getting a bit bored running along on the treadmill. I realized that I was getting complacent and acting as if I had reached my peak performance. Immediately I upped my dream and my speed. I added a little resistance just to keep things interesting. I beat my own personal record – pitiful though it may be if I compared my performance to a true athlete (lucky for me I don't compare myself with others).

I'm feeling like a big dreamer today – with greater potential than I realized. How about you? Are you dreaming big, or living satisfied with the status quo?

Recommended reading: Numbers 4 - 6

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