by Daniel Tay
Over those fifteen years, I’ve had many dreams imbued into my mind. I’ve adored the idea and possible reality of living out the passions and ambitions that I had: I wanted to pursue palaeontology (Jurassic Park has got to be the coolest show there was back in the 90s), to be a singer/songwriter/musician, a national swimmer, a motivational speaker … I wanted to be someone who could make an impact on others and be recognised for it.
However, life isn’t simply a bed of roses and things often don’t turn out the way we want them to. Many events in my life have left me disappointed because many things I dreamt of didn’t come to pass. Eventually, disappointment sank its teeth deep into me and left wounds and scars. In the process, I taught myself to cope and hide frustrations between the fractures of the façade I had worn. I’ve had my fair share of conversations with other “war-veterans”, and from them, I do believe I can conclude that many young people have been taken out by a common lie:
My failures prove that I am incompetent and this path holds no future for me; the pain I felt is merely emphatic of the futility of trying again.
The battle scars we hide are reminders of how long it took for many of us to recover from the wounds that have damaged our hearts and minds: from failing to meet the expectations of parents to self-imposed aspirations turned sour, accidents sustained from a game to that brutal, sarcastic remark driven into the heart by a special someone we cherished.
These exit wounds have left us with the impression that dreams are a waste of time. Dreaming, in parallel, seems to be like fortifying the walls of sandcastles, built around the possibilities that we could live safely in. But it wouldn’t take long before the tides of reality chew away our safeguard and eventually, all we will see is the desolation of the safe havens we tried to make. Dreaming becomes a painful and utterly loathsome process that we teach ourselves to avoid.
We have taught ourselves and learned to cope with the constant torments of “what ifs” swirling in our heads. There is a constant need to keep our sanity breathing as our conscience treads in a pool of unanswered questions:
“If things couldn’t come to pass after so much effort, why bother trying?"
"Did God even plan for me to succeed in the first place?"
"Does He even have a plan for me?”
There are two kinds of dreams: God-given dreams aligned to His purpose, and those that are fueled by the passions of the flesh – self- satiable, hugely desired dreams that are centered on the idea of “what I want”. The frustrations that cripple us, however, come from the latter.
God-given dreams are clear in their purpose: to reveal the Father and to bless others in the process or at the end of the day. They primarily focus on doing His will and bring a revelation that the individual can be a potential channel of blessing for His purpose.
In contrast, there are dreams that stem from a need to satisfy the flesh. It is often based on passions or desires, causing us to believe that we can build our lives on the things we want. I love how songwriters paint pictures with words carefully considered and selected. Smelted into each line is a myriad of thoughts, emotions and revelations. Accompanied with rhythm, rhyme and chords, the songwriter is able to turn his maladies into melodies. It’s a fascinating work of art. But my desire to write music is often fueled by the need and desire to put a voice to the emotions and impress others with the finished product. It is stemmed from a passion rooted in insecurity.
When our dreams don’t come to pass, do we immediately lash out at God for not allowing them to come to pass? Often we engage in emotional gymnastics, wallowing in self-pity and frustration because things do not turn out the way we had wanted them to.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” Declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” - Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
Jeremiah 29:11 is probably one of the most frequently quoted verses in the Bible. Unfortunately, I think it has become a cliché and a hackneyed phrase of courtesy used in the hope to bring encouragement to another, and perhaps much of its meaning has been lost.
Israel had prophecies that she would be blessed and be a blessing for others. However, during the time where Jeremiah the prophet of old lived, Israel was found in ruins and many of her people were exiled to Babylon. The people were possibly doubtful if God was really looking out for them and may have considered relinquishing any remaining hope. Their beliefs and dreams could have been inferred to be absolutely invalid in their circumstances then. However, God used Jeremiah to encourage them and in his letter, God not only promised them fruitfulness (Jeremiah 29 v5-7), peace (v7), hope (v10-11, 14), but also reassured them of His realness (v12-14). God was letting His people know that He was still in control and that He would see them through and bring to pass what He had promised.
The people who were in shambles and ruin were given a message of hope – they were not alone in their circumstance and God was going to make everything beautiful in His time (Ecclesiastes 3:11a).
In the chaos and confusion, God is and will always be faithful. He is in control. We have the assurance that He will make all things work for those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28); all we have to do is to trust in His Character and timing.
In the meantime, we can hold onto these promises and choose to commit ourselves and align our dreams with His purposes. It is only then that we will discover what truly is on His heart and what isn’t. Dreams stemmed from personal gain will often resurface and there will be a need to bring it before Him, as they can be an idol in our lives. Only after the soul surgery will pride and selfish desires be chiseled away from our hearts ; only then will our dreams start to take alignment from the heart of the Father, who always plans the best things for us.
May we be willing to lay down before Him our pride and fleshly desires, because at the end of the day what’s important is that we see how it’s harder to fall down when we’re walking daily on our knees.
However, life isn’t simply a bed of roses and things often don’t turn out the way we want them to. Many events in my life have left me disappointed because many things I dreamt of didn’t come to pass. Eventually, disappointment sank its teeth deep into me and left wounds and scars. In the process, I taught myself to cope and hide frustrations between the fractures of the façade I had worn. I’ve had my fair share of conversations with other “war-veterans”, and from them, I do believe I can conclude that many young people have been taken out by a common lie:
My failures prove that I am incompetent and this path holds no future for me; the pain I felt is merely emphatic of the futility of trying again.
The battle scars we hide are reminders of how long it took for many of us to recover from the wounds that have damaged our hearts and minds: from failing to meet the expectations of parents to self-imposed aspirations turned sour, accidents sustained from a game to that brutal, sarcastic remark driven into the heart by a special someone we cherished.
These exit wounds have left us with the impression that dreams are a waste of time. Dreaming, in parallel, seems to be like fortifying the walls of sandcastles, built around the possibilities that we could live safely in. But it wouldn’t take long before the tides of reality chew away our safeguard and eventually, all we will see is the desolation of the safe havens we tried to make. Dreaming becomes a painful and utterly loathsome process that we teach ourselves to avoid.
We have taught ourselves and learned to cope with the constant torments of “what ifs” swirling in our heads. There is a constant need to keep our sanity breathing as our conscience treads in a pool of unanswered questions:
“If things couldn’t come to pass after so much effort, why bother trying?"
"Did God even plan for me to succeed in the first place?"
"Does He even have a plan for me?”
There are two kinds of dreams: God-given dreams aligned to His purpose, and those that are fueled by the passions of the flesh – self- satiable, hugely desired dreams that are centered on the idea of “what I want”. The frustrations that cripple us, however, come from the latter.
God-given dreams are clear in their purpose: to reveal the Father and to bless others in the process or at the end of the day. They primarily focus on doing His will and bring a revelation that the individual can be a potential channel of blessing for His purpose.
In contrast, there are dreams that stem from a need to satisfy the flesh. It is often based on passions or desires, causing us to believe that we can build our lives on the things we want. I love how songwriters paint pictures with words carefully considered and selected. Smelted into each line is a myriad of thoughts, emotions and revelations. Accompanied with rhythm, rhyme and chords, the songwriter is able to turn his maladies into melodies. It’s a fascinating work of art. But my desire to write music is often fueled by the need and desire to put a voice to the emotions and impress others with the finished product. It is stemmed from a passion rooted in insecurity.
When our dreams don’t come to pass, do we immediately lash out at God for not allowing them to come to pass? Often we engage in emotional gymnastics, wallowing in self-pity and frustration because things do not turn out the way we had wanted them to.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” Declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” - Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
Jeremiah 29:11 is probably one of the most frequently quoted verses in the Bible. Unfortunately, I think it has become a cliché and a hackneyed phrase of courtesy used in the hope to bring encouragement to another, and perhaps much of its meaning has been lost.
Israel had prophecies that she would be blessed and be a blessing for others. However, during the time where Jeremiah the prophet of old lived, Israel was found in ruins and many of her people were exiled to Babylon. The people were possibly doubtful if God was really looking out for them and may have considered relinquishing any remaining hope. Their beliefs and dreams could have been inferred to be absolutely invalid in their circumstances then. However, God used Jeremiah to encourage them and in his letter, God not only promised them fruitfulness (Jeremiah 29 v5-7), peace (v7), hope (v10-11, 14), but also reassured them of His realness (v12-14). God was letting His people know that He was still in control and that He would see them through and bring to pass what He had promised.
The people who were in shambles and ruin were given a message of hope – they were not alone in their circumstance and God was going to make everything beautiful in His time (Ecclesiastes 3:11a).
In the chaos and confusion, God is and will always be faithful. He is in control. We have the assurance that He will make all things work for those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28); all we have to do is to trust in His Character and timing.
In the meantime, we can hold onto these promises and choose to commit ourselves and align our dreams with His purposes. It is only then that we will discover what truly is on His heart and what isn’t. Dreams stemmed from personal gain will often resurface and there will be a need to bring it before Him, as they can be an idol in our lives. Only after the soul surgery will pride and selfish desires be chiseled away from our hearts ; only then will our dreams start to take alignment from the heart of the Father, who always plans the best things for us.
May we be willing to lay down before Him our pride and fleshly desires, because at the end of the day what’s important is that we see how it’s harder to fall down when we’re walking daily on our knees.