Following the Dream

My life has taken many twist and turns. I've worked in many fields and have had many short term goals, temporary ambitions and short lived dreams. Some I have accomplished and accomplished well, others I have not, mostly because my heart wasn't really in it. It was not my dream but from each of these twist and turns, all my ups and downs I have learned things; I have grown, become more knowledgeable and wiser. I still have a long way to go though I can now see the top of the hill beyond the clouds. Even though different things, happenings in my life have sparked a variety of interest and I pursued them for a time, they were not my ultimate dream, not the real goal of my life, what I have since a very young age believed I was meant to be, meant to do with my life. I have never completely lost sight of that original dream, goal, and hope for my life here on Earth. It has always been there, sometimes just a tiny spark, a faint glow, but always there, never completely dying out and growing cold. From time to time I have let my dream lay dormant in some little corner of my life and then there would come a time when I would take it out, dust it off, and walk a little further along that road to my ultimate dream. I have never quit, never stopped believing in my dream. God knows his plan for us and he will not let it die. We may wander off in the wrong direction, take detours, even get ourselves lost for awhile, but deep down inside us is that little something that keeps prodding us back, back to the path God intended for us to walk. We can choose to follow that plan or not but the plan is still there, the perfect plan for each of our lives. God will lead us to the fulfillment of our dream, the inspiration God planted in us, but even God can't lead if we won't follow him. You see, it is really all up to us. We make the choice. That is what living is all about; CHOICES. Unless we make the choice to follow the dream, to do, to accomplish, we will never have "those things most needed or to be desired." (Henry David Thoreau from Desiderata)

All we have to do is believe and then follow that which we believe even if others tell you it won't work, it is impossible, not for you, even if they think they have a better plan for your life. Even if someone tells you that you are only building castles in the sky and your hopes are far beyond your station in life, don't give up on your dream. Your future belongs to you and what you attain in that future depends entirely on what you do to attain it, for better or worse. Do you remember, or remember reading about a woman named Eleanor Roosevelt? Eleanor Roosevelt was a strong and courageous woman. She was our First Lady just prior and during World War II, the wife of the President, Franklin D. Roosevelt and she lived long before “women's lib” but she believed in equality, that man, woman or child, everyone should have the opportunity to follow their dream, become all they can be; man, woman or child, no matter who you are, if you believe you can, you will. She believed everyone had the right to their dream and the right to strive to accomplish that dream, no matter whom you are, rich or poor, no matter what color your skin is or what your cultural and ethnic background may be: She said “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dream.” If you can't dream it, you will never accomplish it. What seems the impossible is only impossible for those who will not try and keep on trying. “Success is the sum of small efforts day in and day out.” (Robert Collier)

Even if the present circumstances in your life make your dream look hopeless…Remember this; God has a plan, he always has had a very special and unique plan for you. If you follow that plan, that path blazed before you, you will eventually reach the goal. Do not become discouraged and give up…“With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” (Jesus…the Bible Matthew 19:26) What may seem impossible to us, put in God's hands it is very possible. If we put our faith and trust in him, God will lead us to our dream but we have to follow. “Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart” (King David…Psalm 37:4…the Bible) How badly do you want your dream to be a reality? Are you willing to keep the dream in front of you and keep moving toward that dream one step at a time? It is up to you to decide and not up to anyone else. Don't let anyone steal your dream. "Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined." (Henry David Thoreau) We each need to learn to trust that small voice within, coming from the person we really are, from that spirit within us to take the time to look within and to uncover whatever it is that is blocking us from our own truth, our own desire for our life.

God has a very special plan for you. He had that plan laid out right from the very beginning. That small voice within is trying to direct you onto the path God plans for you to follow. It is up to us to listen and then follow the directions. The fear (in this case fear means to hold in highest respect, esteem, to be in awe of) “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” (King David…Psalm 111:10 the Bible) We need to be wise enough to pay attention to that “still small voice within”. Listen, and take a good look at where in life you are right now. What you are now is the sum of what you have been, but what you will be depends on what you do now. It is all up to you. We all have challenges to face. We each make mistakes, take the wrong path from time to time. So learn from it. Don't be discouraged. Don't give up. Just get back on track and keep putting one foot in front of the other. "A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing."(George Bernard Shaw) Follow the dream. You may make some mistakes along the way but learn from them and keep moving forward. You can not fail if you do not quit. Don't give up on God and don't give up on yourself. You are an amazing, wonderful and unique person. Pay attention to your inner voice and keep hope alive. Follow the dream within you.