God Loves Your DREAM

A 60-Day Journey to Fulfilling the Dream God Placed in Your Heart

Copyright © 2013 Suzanne Elizabeth Anderson

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the author.

Suzanne Elizabeth Anderson

Henry and George Press

PO Box 2465

Evergreen, Colorado 80437

Scripture quotations are taken from the (NIV) New International Version, Copyright 1984, the International Bible Society. All rights reserved worldwide. Also from The Message, by Eugene H. Peterson, 2005.

1st ed.

ISBN-13:978-1494297015

ISBN-10:1494297019

Cover Design The Cover Collection.com © 2013

Cover Photo Credit: Shutterstock.com

Interior Design Credit: Jake Muelle

Published by Henry and George Press

www.henryandgeorgepress.com

For more devotional readings and to find out about upcoming books:

www.suzanneelizabethanderson.com

For Julie Carlson

Again.

My dear friend and a sister in Christ.

Your deep relationship with God

and your unshakable faith

are an inspiration to me.

Introduction

Day 1: Julia Child Knows You Have to Start Somewhere

Day 2: Waiting For An Answer

Day 3: Singing To God With Gratitude

Day 4: Your Glorious Purpose

Day 5: Everything Beautiful In Its T

Day 6: Giving God Your Beautiful Best

Day 7: Easy Forgiveness

Day 8: “Un”Easy Forgiveness

Day 9: Our Unbelief And The Unbelief Of Those We Love

Day 10: Persistence Wins

Day 11: One Day Is As Good As A Thousand Years

Day 12: The Love Of God Made Manifest

Day 13: The Most Important Commandment

Day 14: Dealing With Discouragement

Day 15: Let Go

Day 16: He Has Removed Our Sins

Day 17: Don’t Be Afraid, I Am With You

Day 18: Release Fear

Day 19: Don’t Worry, I Will Give You Strength

Day 20: He Has Given Us The Holy Spirit

Day 21: What Would The Happy You Do?

Day 22: Jesus Said

Day 23: The Mystery Of Prayer

Day 24: Hallowed Be Your Name

Day 25: Putting Your Story In God’s Word

Day 26: Go Out And Stand On The Mountain

Day 27: With Your Whole Heart

Day 28: Do We Ever Grow Up?

Day 29: Good Advice On Getting Unstuck

Day 30: Giving Comes In Many Forms

Day 31: Tunnel Vision

Day 32: Saving For A Dream

Day 33: No Expiration Date On Our Dreams

Day 34: Setting Goals

Day 35: Finding Where You Fit

Day 36: Blessings At A Car Wash

Day 37: Mustard Seed Faith

Day 38: Trusting God With Every Dream

Day 39: Are You Using Your God-Given Talent?

Day 40: Closing Doors

Day 41: Finish What God Has Started

Day 42: Comparisons And Competition

Day 43: Do All In The Name Of Jesus Christ

Day 44: God Refreshes My Soul

Day 45: Salvation

Day 46: My Heart Was Grieved

Day 47: He Listened So Intently

Day 48: God Never Forgets You

Day 49: In Christ Lives All The Fullness Of God

Day 50: “I’ll Show Up …”

Day 51: I Cried Out, “I Am Slipping!”

Day 52: Stumbling Blocks In Our Path

Day 53: Bearing Fruit In Each Season

Day 54: I Can’t Even See The Sun This Morning

Day 55: Giving Up

Day 56: Going The Distance With God

Day 57: Your Little Strength Is More Than Enough

Day 58: Reaching Out For The Hem Of The Master

Day 59: God Looks At The Heart

Day 60: Stay The Course

Day 61: God’s Explosive Love

From The Author

Last year, I wrote a 30-day devotional, Waiting with God, and dedicated it to my friend, Julie. Her reaction made me laugh aloud…

“You should really make it sixty days.”

That simple comment inspired the book you hold in your hands.

An interesting thing that happened as I expanded my thirty days into sixty… as I dug deeper, I became more unflinchingly honest about sharing the doubts, fears, the sometimes joyful, and often-heartbreaking moments of my walk with God.

At first, I was afraid to share this part of myself so openly with you. I wondered if I would seem like a weak Christian if I admitted that sometimes I doubted whether God would answer my prayers, or if I could really trust Him to care about my dreams as much as I did. However, as I read the letters I received after you read my first devotional, and described how it reflected your life, I became braver.

I want to share my journey to the dream God placed in my heart because it has taken me almost twenty years to get here. I have tried and failed, given up, and begun again, more times than I can count. I am hoping that by sharing my experience, I can encourage you to not give up on your dreams, especially when they take longer than you expected.

I believe the greatest challenges we face in reaching our dreams are overcoming our fears and learning to trust God’s plan for our lives. I hope that as I share the disappointment and setbacks I’ve faced, you will learn that your own fears or discouragement are not a reason to quit, but to turn to God, pour out your heart, and learn to trust in His guidance.

God will comfort you and give you the courage to go forward. He will never place a dream in your heart that is too big to achieve if you will share it with Him. Remember, He is the Original Creator! He knew you before you were born, He knows everything about you.

God placed a special dream in your heart that only you can fulfill. He’s given you a purpose for your life and if you will walk with Him, you will see that purpose completed.

As we embark on these sixty days together, I encourage you to consider two suggestions:

First, begin keeping a journal of your sixty-day journey, so that you can return to the pages at the end of our time together, and see how God has guided your steps.

Second, share this journey with a friend. It’s encouraging to know that you are not alone, that we all hold a precious dream in our hearts and can encourage one another. Commit to working through the book together and checking in with each other on a weekly basis. Become prayer partners during the sixty days and promise to pray that God would reveal to each of you, the plans He has for your life.

We are each on a special journey toward fulfilling the dreams God has placed in our hearts. It is a road filled with rapid increase, sudden setbacks, and baffling blind alleys. Nevertheless, I promise you that your journey will bring you closer to God. As you draw closer, you will discover that God loves your dreams as much as you do. He wants you to share these dreams with Him, to allow Him to guide you and help you along the way.

I assure you:

God will always provide an answer to your prayer.

You are never alone; God is always near.

And more than anything else…

God loves you beyond measure.

DEDICATION VERSE:

Ephesians 1:16-18

I have never stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you wisdom to see clearly and really understand who Christ is and all that he has done for you. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can see something of the future he has called you to share. I want you to realize that God has been made rich because we who are Christ’s have been given to him!

Ephesians 1:16-18 (TLB)

DAY 1

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up;

do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.

~Isaiah 43:19

JULIA CHILD KNOWS YOU HAVE TO START SOMEWHERE

A few years ago, I was having one of my “I have accomplished nothing in the past year; I am a loser” moments. I wasn’t working on anything, I felt stuck and frustrated.

So I went to a movie.

My choice of movie was related to two of my three passions (books, cooking, and religion): Julie and Julia, written and directed by Nora Ephron, based on the book and blog, of the same name, by Julie Powell, and memoir of Julia Child, My Life in France.

I loved the film. I had read Julie and Julia when it first came out in hardback, driven by my love of all things Julia Child and a curiosity to learn just how one woman (Julie Powell) changed her life.

By the end of the film, I found myself thrilled for both women portrayed in the film, inspired, and even tearful in a happy way. As I left the theatre I knew that I’d write about the experience and even began composing an essay on how the film underscored the importance of perseverance: Julia Child’s eight year odyssey to complete, revise, and publish Mastering the Art of French Cooking and Julie Powell’s in managing to cook all 524 recipes in 365 days.

It presented an interesting contrast on the nature of success. In the case of Julia Child, it took years of unrequited toil, and in Julie Powell’s life, the success of her blog was quickly followed by a book contract and then a movie deal. Lottery-winning success by comparison.

In the end, however, what both women share was a singular focus that led them to: Just Start!

Whether you are unknowingly changing the face of American home cookery on the energy of your passion for French cooking or changing your life by spending a year cooking from that book, the key to a successful life begins with the resolution to do something.

And then the resolution to get up the next day and every day after and do something again and again and again.

There is one large caveat: whatever you choose should be a source of joy and passion. Otherwise, you will not have the energy to continue the pursuit when the first joy-filled days become years.

There are no guarantees that they will someday make a film about your pursuit. Nevertheless, from the look on Julia Child’s face in Meryl Streep’s portrayal and in every photo I’ve seen, doing something with passion brings its own rewards.

Day 1 Reflections:

Reflecting on your life, what activity has brought you the greatest joy? Can you imagine turning this into your dream? What first step, could you take today to make this dream a reality?

DAY 2

Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you;

He rises to show you compassion.

For the Lord is a God of justice.

Blessed are all who wait for him!

~Isaiah 30:18

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

~Isaiah 40:31

WAITING FOR AN ANSWER

Julia Child spent nearly a decade writing and editing her first cookbook. My dream of becoming a published author took fifteen years to finally arrive.

Waiting for a dream to come to fruition or a prayer to be answered can be challenging.

When we don’t hear an immediate answer one way or another, our belief can feel like it’s being chipped away as each day of disappointment leaves us a bit more discouraged.

This is the way I felt during those years of writing, having my work rejected, and never knowing if my work would ever be read. When we are in a spiritual desert, our time of waiting can feel interminable.

During those times in the wasteland, it feels like everything is falling just short of where it needs to be and nothing is quite succeeding.

Sometimes, like the people of Israel when they wandered in the desert, we can forget where we came from and that things were worse then, or we might even begin to fool ourselves into thinking we’d like to go back to the way things were.

On my long walks through the woods with my dogs, I’ve had lengthy conversations with God, questioning everything I was doing.

When I was trying to decide on the cover for this book, I came across a beautiful photograph of a robin’s nest with a couple eggs against an empty backdrop of blue.

I’m beginning to think this photo is similar to the experience of waiting for an answer to prayer.

Waiting on our dreams is like waiting for the eggs to hatch. We know the lovely eggs contain beautiful birds. The eggs themselves represent our efforts. We’ve done the work. That is just the point. We have done all we can; there is literally nothing more we can do.

That is exactly where we have to let go, step back, and believe.

If we tried to make those eggs hatch before they were ready, we’d have the makings of scrambled eggs, not the beautiful young birds that would eventually stretch their wings and take flight.

We cannot make the eggs hatch before the baby within has fully developed.

We can’t hurry the process.

Everything will come together when it’s fully developed.

While we wait, we must believe that God already has the outcome in order and waiting is time to bring us into a closer, deeper relationship with God.

Day 2 Reflections:

Can we use this time of waiting to believe the eggs are not empty but already hold the perfect answer to our prayers and that their entrance into our lives will come perfectly formed at just the right time?

What answers are you waiting for today?

DAY 3

Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.

~Colossians 3:15-17

SINGING TO GOD WITH GRATITUDE

When we can praise God in while we are waiting on our dreams to be fulfilled, we are demonstrating our faith that God knows our hearts desires, and as He has stated in the Bible, will bring our dreams to fruition when the time is right.

The easiest way to do this is to begin our prayer time with ‘praise time’. Praising God for being God, for loving us, for sending Jesus to take away our sins, for all the good in our life, is a wonderful way to regain our balance.

I’m a great fan of gratitude lists, I write about them several times a year on my blog. After reading Ann Voskamp’s One Thousand Gifts, I decided to take on her challenge of keeping a dedicated journal where I number and count my “thank yous” with the aim of reaching one thousand.

What’s the reasoning behind a list of 1,000 rather than the usual list five things?

I believe the cumulative impact of noticing and writing and reflecting on this growing list of 1,000 instances of gratitude that you have created over time will help you understand that you have more blessings in your life than you realize.

Starting this project does not require:

Waiting until New Year’s Day . . . I started on August 8th.

Purchasing a fancy journal . . . I’m using an old blank notebook.

The burden of writing a certain number of items each day, or even writing every day . . . I forget to write some days. When I do write, I might list 2 items or 10 items.

I found an old, dusty, blank book among things that were going into our garage sale. I wrote the date on the first page, turned the page, and began numbering and writing the things I was grateful for in that moment.

On some days, I’ll write ten things quickly. On other days, I can only think of two or three. I don’t think the number matters, or even if you’re doing it every day, although I’m guessing that over time is will become something I look forward to counting and writing.

I started a month ago, and I’m closing in on #100.

A few thoughts on what I’ve found so far . . .

I’ve discovered that if you can express gratitude on a day when everything seems to be bleak and horrible, you’ll find yourself feeling better when you put down the pen. There seems to be real blessing in the effort it takes to consider what you are still grateful for in the midst of a bad day.

Gratitude can be found in the things that surround us. As I sit in my reading space, I lift my pen from the page and look around the room. I’m incredibly grateful for: Henry, my beloved first Newfoundland dog sleeping at my feet. On the little table next to me: my Bible, my journal, and the assorted devotionals, each a form of prayer that has drawn me closer to God.

A list of 1,000 may not be enough. I honestly believe that I once I write that one thousandth item of gratitude, I will want to keep going because the blessing isn’t in the counting, it’s in realizing how filled with blessing our days have become.

Day 3 Reflections:

Will you join me in starting your own gratitude list of 1,000?

DAY 4

1-6 God, investigate my life;
get all the facts firsthand.
I’m an open book to you;
even from a distance, you know what I’m thinking.
You know when I leave and when I get back;
I’m never out of your sight.
You know everything I’m going to say
before I start the first sentence.
I look behind me and you’re there,
then up ahead and you’re there, too—your reassuring presence, coming and going.
This is too much, too wonderful—I can’t take it all in!

13-16 Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out;
you formed me in my mother’s womb.
I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking!
Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
I worship in adoration—what a creation!
You know me inside and out,
you know every bone in my body;
You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
how I was sculpted from nothing into something.
Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;
all the stages of my life were spread out before you,
The days of my life all prepared
before I’d even lived one day.

PSALM 139: 1-6, 13-16, MSG

YOUR GLORIOUS PURPOSE

PSALM 139 is one of the most inspirational passages in the Bible. Here we discover that while we may struggle with discovering our dream, and then bringing it to fruition, our purpose is no mystery to God.

We are assured that we are wonderfully and beautifully made in God’s eyes. He has watched us in our mother’s womb. Even before we were born, God already knew everything about us, and all the days of our lives were known by God.

When we are too afraid to mention our deepest heart’s desire to anyone else, we can confidently share it with God! He welcomes our conversations with Him.

God delights in knowing that we want to pursue the glorious purpose that He placed in our hearts before we were born. Therefore, why wouldn’t He also want us to continue that conversation as that dream becomes real in our lives?

Day 4 Reflections:

Read Psalm 139 in its entirety. Then write our the verses that have special meaning to you. Does knowing that God has known and loved you, even before you were born, give you courage to embrace your God-given purpose?

DAY 5

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”

~Ecclesiastes 3:11

EVERYTHING BEAUTIFUL IN ITS TIME

Part of pursuing our dreams is learning how to use our time wisely, especially when we have families that count on us and jobs that take up the better part of our day.

It’s very easy to let hours and then days flow by, being busy with the daily requirements of life and letting our dreams fall by the wayside.

To combat this, I’ve begun living consciously. By this, I think about how I spend my time and frame my choices in a more positive and constructive way. Today I began thinking and then acting upon what I call the elements of a good day. I’ve come up with the following:

1. Doing what I love: We all have work commitments, those things we have to do every day to put groceries in the fridge. However, I’ve discovered that if I can carve out a dedicated space to do something I love each day, then the “work stuff” seems much more pleasant. (Count yourself blessed if your work also happens to be something you love!) I started today by writing 1,000 words in my novel-in-progress. I’ve found that if I wait until the end of the day to start writing, I’m tired and either write half-heartedly or make an excuse not to write at all. By writing first thing in the morning, I felt great when I’d reached my goal and was ready to take on the rest of my tasks for the day.

2. Get Moving: This is not about losing weight or getting into shape, although those are terrific benefits; this is about getting outside. My favorite exercise has always been a long walk. Now that I live in the mountains, getting outside has the added benefit of being a treat to the eyes, the soul, and the mind. I feel refreshed when I’m walking along and see the far off perspective of Mount Evans, the cerulean blue sky, and hear the sound of the wind in the pines. Sounds cliché, but getting outside also helps me to get outside myself and get perspective on the larger picture.

3. Make Contact: Last night I spent a lovely evening with friends at a dinner party. We laughed, shared the tasks of putting dinner on the table, and enjoyed lively conversation. I used to believe that I craved solitude and could easily live in a secluded cabin in the woods. What I’ve discovered is that balance is essential in all things. Yes, I do need time alone, but it’s a necessary and rejuvenating break to spend time with friends and family. These relationships enrich my life in ways I never expected, and they make me a kinder, gentler person.

4. Vitamins and Colorful Food: I suppose this is one of those things that you appreciate as you get older. Or in my case, it’s one of those things that I’ve grown to appreciate as I’ve developed my appreciation of cooking. I have become more aware of the quality of the ingredients I use. I’m now a proponent of shopping in the perimeter aisles of the grocery store, where the fresh foods are, and cooking from scratch as much as possible. Home prepared meals from non-processed, fresh ingredients are better for me and actually taste better.

5. Relax the Mind: Each day I try to make time for reading and listening to music, or listening to music as I read, or listening to a book in the car as I drive around doing errands (I’ve listened to everything from inspirational books by Joel Osteen to the latest bestseller, all checked out from the library).

6. Daily Time with God: I’ve saved this one for last, but it’s actually the best way to start the day. I have found that if I spend as little as 15 minutes reading the Bible and praying, my day is off to a better start.

This year I’m reading through the New Testament, and I have a pocket-version of a New Testament daily Bible. It takes about 5 minutes to read that day’s passage from the New Testament, and then I spend another 5 to 10 minutes speaking with God. I have come to firmly believe that this daily time of Bible reading and prayer is the key to a closer relationship with God.

Every morning I also receive one or two different devotionals in my email inbox. These brief inspiring messages help me to remember that it’s actually not all about me and that God has a greater purpose at work.

Day 5 Reflections:

How many of these “essential elements” are you incorporating into your day? Which new element can you add this week to bring more health and balance into your life?

DAY 6

While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table.

“When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. “This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.”

Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”

Matthew 26: 6-13

GIVING GOD YOUR BEAUTIFUL BEST

What a lovely image we see in this well-known story. A woman, we don’t know much about her, other than she has brought perhaps one of her most precious possessions, an alabaster jar filled with an expensive, beautifully scented perfume.

Rather than keep it for herself, or her family, or even as an item to sell in marketplace, she has chosen to use it to anoint Jesus Christ.

Not surprisingly, she is immediately criticized by Jesus’ followers, because she didn’t sell the oil and use the proceeds for charity.

But as we see in Jesus’ response, this is not a lesson about tithing. He’s already spoken about the importance of caring for people in need.

The lesson of the alabaster jar, for me, is that Jesus longs for us to bring Him our best as we serve Him. That means, that as we pursue our God-given dreams, we honor God by giving our best efforts, working with focus, not giving up when we become discouraged.

Day 6 Reflections:

Stop for a moment, close your eyes, and imagine what your life would look like if you truly gave your dream your best effort, each day?

Would you be further along in your progress of achieving your dream? Would you worry less? Would others enjoy being with you more? Would you be able to draw closer to God?

DAY 7

For they don’t understand God’s way of making people right with himself. Refusing to accept God’s way, they cling to their own way of getting right with God by trying to keep the law. For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given. As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God.

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

For it is in believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.

~Romans 10:3-4, 9-10

EASY FORGIVENESS

So often, when we hurt someone, we feel that we must do something to make amends. We have to ask for forgiveness and hope that the other person will forgive us.

Just so, when we do something to harm ourselves, we need to forgive ourselves.

God’s Word says that when we believe Jesus Christ died and was raised from the dead to take away the sins of the world, we are forgiven and we are saved.

God’s forgiveness comes without strings or conditions. There’s nothing you have to do to earn it. All you have to do is accept God’s love for you.

God’s invitation to forgiveness is easy. All it takes is our acceptance.

Yet sometimes we are so filled with feelings of guilt and unworthiness that we are unable to release the burdens we carry and open our arms to Jesus and just say, “Yes, Lord, I believe. Yes, Lord, I accept the gift of your salvation.”

Day 7 Reflections:

Are you carrying a burden that is keeping your arms full, your heart weighed down, and your spirit downcast? What do you need to lay at the foot of the Cross today?

DAY 8

Bear with each other and forgive one another, if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

~Colossians 3:12-14

“UN”EASY FORGIVENESS

Here’s the thing that makes forgiving others difficult: to do so may require that we re-visit whatever painful event that caused the need for forgiveness in the first place.

More often than not, we find it easier to brush the event under the carpet, keeping it safely in the past, so we don’t have to confront our feelings or the other person’s.

However, while we pretend the event is over, it remains standing in the shadows, ever present.

When we forgive ourselves and others, we free ourselves to move forward.

We no longer live in the present looking backward.

We free ourselves to create lives we value, no longer allowing our time to be consumed with anger or regret.

“Keep your thoughts right—for as you think, so you are. Thoughts are things; therefore, think only the things that will make the world better and you unashamed.”

~Henry H. Buckley

Day 8 Reflections:

Who do you need to forgive? Do you feel God calling you to forgive that person now?

DAY 9

Go and say to this people;

When you hear what I say,

you will not understand.

When you see what I do,

you will not comprehend.

For the hearts of these people are hardened,

and their ears cannot hear,

and they have closed their eyes—

so their eyes cannot see,

and their ears cannot hear,

and their hearts cannot understand,

and they cannot turn to me

and let me heal them.”

~Isaiah 6:9-10

OUR UNBELIEF AND THE UNBELIEF OF THOSE WE LOVE

Often, when I’m speaking with someone who doesn’t agree with something I’ve said, especially with regard to my religious beliefs, I’m too quick to defend myself or take offense or worse yet, get angry out of frustration . . . or dare we say, insecurity.

This last chapter of Acts describes Paul’s journey from Malta, as a prisoner, to Rome where he defended his faith and became a free man.

These particular verses, which Paul uses to illustrate his inability to convince the elders of the Jewish church in Rome about Jesus as the Messiah, got me thinking . . .

My usual quick, gut reaction doesn’t help me, it simply shuts down communication.

Instead, I’m trying to learn to pause, take a step back, and try to see things from the other person’s perspective. Often, they’re not trying to be insulting, they’re defending a position that they believe is equally of merit.

What I am practicing is rather than react defensively, what if I simply “agree to disagree”? I maintain my beliefs, while keeping my relationship with the other person intact.

I’m not denying my beliefs; they’re as strong as ever. However, I’ll accept that not everyone has to believe what I do in order for me to be right or for me to believe what I believe.

I truly believe that we will each eventually come into a relationship with God.

However, it must be on our own terms, not someone else’s . . . which makes perfect sense because we are each individuals. My relationship with my mother is different than my siblings’ relationships with her, because we are each different people. That doesn’t make any of those relationships less loving or enduring, simply different in their perspective.

I believe it’s the same in our relationship with God. He loves each of us equally—yes, even those of us who don’t acknowledge His existence. And if we believe that God is in control, can we also believe that He will eventually bring each of us into a relationship with Him?

If we can embrace that idea, we can live our faith, share it with others, and not be insulted or intimidated when we are rejected. We can respect the beliefs (or atheism) of others with the knowledge that everyone is on a different path to God.

Day 9 Reflections:

Do you have a family member, close friend, or co-worker whose differing beliefs cause conflict in your relationship? How can you extend Jesus’ commandment that “we love one another”, even though you don’t share the same beliefs?

DAY 10

“What strength do I have, that I should still hope? What prospects, that I should be patient?

~Job 6:10-12

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.

~Luke 18:1-3

To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life.

~Romans 2:6-8

PERSISTENCE WINS

Following your dreams is never a straightforward or easy path.

Have you ever felt like Job in today’s first verse? You’ve reached the end of your endurance. Yes, you dearly want your dream to come true, but you’ve spent your last ounce of patience.

Waiting on our dreams can be tough.

There are often potholes and diversions that will cause you to question just how much you want what you want.

In those moments, remember Jesus’ response to Job’s hopelessness. We should pray and never give up. God knows your deepest desires and will honor them at the right time.

If you still believe your dream is worth the journey, continue on, and remember that persistence wins.

Day 10 Reflections:

Find an inspirational verse and write it on a card. Underneath, write the dream you are holding onto. Post the card where you can see it. Memorize the verse and repeat it aloud to yourself several times a day.

DAY 11

Don’t overlook the obvious here, friends. With God, one day is as good as a thousand years, a thousand years as a day. God isn’t late with his promise as some measure lateness.

~2 Peter 3:8 (MSG)

ONE DAY IS AS GOOD AS A THOUSAND YEARS

When we are working hard to pursue a long-held dream, our thoughts and energy become consumed by our efforts. So consumed that we can become oblivious to what’s going on around us or even to those we love dearly. We forget to live in the moment, to cherish where we are right now, and to embrace whatever we are facing as part of the larger journey of our lives.

I experienced this lesson in a very real way recently, after my mother fell in our home, hit her head, and ended up with a concussion that sent her to the hospital and then to a rehabilitation center.

After a month-long stay, Mom came home from the rehabilitation center on Saturday.

On Sunday, we spent the day sitting on the deck of our house, drinking coffee, reading, listening to classical music, and savoring the beautiful Colorado weather.

What we were really celebrating, of course, was that Mom was finally home after a month in the hospital and then a rehabilitation facility.

As we enjoyed the afternoon, doing mundane things like drinking coffee and reading, I realized what it means to live in the moment.

This was the best day I had had in a very long time. It was made more special because I allowed myself to truly enjoy it . . . I lived right there in the moment.

I didn’t think about the future, the past, what will happen with Mom’s health, or with my fledgling writing career.

Which is what I usually do. Most mornings, I wake myself up before dawn, worrying about both real problems and imagined catastrophes.

I am the personification of Eeyore.

However, on that Sunday I allowed myself to think no further than the moment we were experiencing right then.

What I discovered is that this might be the key to happiness.

I’m not advocating shutting one’s mind to planning for the future or working hard when a project needs to be completed. Nevertheless, there is also a time and place to just relax, recharge, and enjoy the company of those we love.

And when we are in that place, our experience will be more memorable if we are fully present, if we give our full attention to those we are with or the task at hand. Especially if that person is someone we treasure, and the task is renewing the mind.

Day 11 Reflections:

When is the last time you felt fully present, not distracted by work or other concerns, when you were with your family or loved ones? In the coming week, can you carve out a few hours to sit down to dinner as a family, to take a relaxing walk with a parent or child, and commit to be fully attentive to that person while you are together?

DAY 12

In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

~1 John 4:9-11

THE LOVE OF GOD MADE MANIFEST

Love is expressed in a myriad of ways each day through acts of kindness or a gentle word.

But sometimes, Love is expressed through incredible sacrifice.

When we review of the life of Jesus, His teachings were all about reaching out to one another in love and treating each other with the same generosity of spirit that we would want to be treated with.

Sometimes I get so caught up in looking for answers to my problems or looking for an encouraging word in the pages of the Bible, that I forget to marvel at the most important message of all. That God loves us so much, that He willingly sent His Son to teach us how to live, how to love, and then His Son died for our sins, so that we could join Him in heaven forever and ever.

God is the giver of our dreams. Let’s not forget to praise and thank Him for all that He has given us. Especially the most precious gift of all.

Day 12 Reflections:

Today, let’s acknowledge the Love that Jesus made manifest in His sacrifice on our behalf.

DAY 13

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating.

Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him,

“Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this:

‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’

The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

There is no commandment greater than these.”

~Matthew 12:28-32

THE MOST IMPORTANT COMMANDMENT

Ever wondered what “Maundy Thursday” meant?

Maundy means commandment. At the Last Supper, Jesus gave us an important commandment:

“Love one another.

As I have loved you, so you must love one another.

By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

~John 13:34-35

If you were to ask me what draws me most to a relationship with Jesus Christ, it would be this message. It is my belief that the central message of Jesus was LOVE. In fact, He said it himself in the above passage.

Atheists often point to all of the horrible crimes against humanity that have been committed in the name of God. And they did happen. However, they were not committed by the command of God.

Here is the most important lesson I’ve learned while reading the Bible: There’s a great difference between others using God’s words for their own political or monetary gain and what God is actually trying to teach us.

Go to the source. Focus on what God says: “Love one another.”

Incredible that Jesus was able to say this even as He knew that within days He would be led to the cross to willingly bear the burden of our sins and then rise in triumph three days later.

That is Love.

Day 13 Reflections:

How and when did you come to know Jesus as your personal savior? Has your relationship with Jesus been based on love, fear, or obligation? Do you believe that Jesus wants a relationship with you built on love? Take a moment today to go to Biblegateway.com and type in “Jesus” and “love” in the search window. See how many verses you can find where Jesus speaks of his love for each of us. Which verse resonates with you?

DAY 14

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.”

~Deuteronomy 31:6

“It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; He enables me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You give me your shield of victory, and Your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great. You broaden the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn.”

~Psalm 18:32-36

“Through regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us, and in our physical life… Satan does not tempt us just to make us do wrong things-he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us through regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us to sin, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil.”

~Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest

DEALING WITH DISCOURAGEMENT

I read this passage by Oswald Chambers on a day when I was feeling particularly overwhelmed and discouraged. I was working very hard on a project, but it seemed that no matter what I did, nothing worked. Projects were failing. Sales were collapsing. My savings were dwindling. I’d reached a point where I felt that if things didn’t improve, I’d have to re-think my career plans and my dream.

However, after I read the quote by Oswald Chambers, I realized that discouragement, while being a natural reaction to disappointment, can also be a tool of dark forces to distract us from our goal and pull us off our path, away from the dream that God has put into our heart.

Which is exactly the moment when we need to embrace the spiritual armor that God provides. Don’t let yourself become distracted when setbacks occur, which they will with any heart-held dream that God has given you. Failure is temporary as long as you keep going and let it become a stepping stone on the way to success. Learn from it, then keep going, and your dream will be one step closer.

When you feel overwhelmed by disappointment, recall the real source of your strength. God is with you every step of the way. As the passage from the Psalms promises, God will not only strengthen us in times of setback, He will lift us higher than we were before.

Day 14 Reflections:

Today, recall times in the past when you have faced disappointment and then found that God was with you, or restored the situation, or took you to a higher place. What God has done before, He will do again.

DAY 15

“Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.”

~Luke 1:38

“You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”

~Luke 1:47

LET GO

I read somewhere that God will keep bringing you back to a lesson until you master it.

For me, the issue has always been trust. If I can’t do it myself, I worry that it will not get done.

I have a great challenge trusting the unseen, the unknown, and believing that I can truly trust God’s plan for my life when my own plans don’t always work out.

Even today, after I’ve written a devotional on drawing closer to God while waiting for an answer to prayer, I still find it difficult to completely trust that God is directing my steps, has a plan for my life, and is working everything out for good.

Which I suppose makes me human. But being human is not an excuse for keeping our distance from God.

This whole issue of learning to trust God reminds me of learning to swim. You hold onto the side of the pool with a death grip that turns your knuckles white while you look longingly over your shoulder at the other people swimming and floating and playing in the middle of the pool.

You know that the only way you can join them is to let go.

But you can’t because you’re afraid that if you do, you’ll drown.

In instances like this, our fear is more tangible than the possibility that we might actually be able to swim, or float, or at least discover that our feet can touch the bottom of the pool and we can stand. However, we can’t discover any of these things because our fear has paralyzed us into being glued to the side of the pool by our own death grip.

Maybe this is what God is trying to tell me (us). Let Go. Trust that you’ll be okay, one way or another. Trust. Let Go. Let God.

Let Go. Let God.

God will continue to remind us that trusting Him is the most important step in growing our relationship with Him. He will keep reminding us until we finally let go.

Amen.

Day 15 Reflections:

Trust is my stumbling block. What’s yours? What is keeping you from a closer relationship with God? What are you doing to work on it?

DAY 16

The Lord is compassionate and merciful,

slow to get angry and filled with

unfailing love.

He will not constantly accuse us,

nor remain angry forever.

He does not punish us for all

our sins;

He does not deal harshly with us,

as we deserve.

For His unfailing love toward those

who fear Him

is as great as the height of the

heavens above the earth.

He has removed our sins as far

from us

as the east is from the west.

The Lord is like a father to

His children,

tender and compassionate to

those who fear Him.

~Psalm 103:8-12

HE HAS REMOVED

OUR SINS

He has removed our sins as far

from us as the east is from the west.

Read these words out loud, replacing ‘our’ with ‘my’, and ‘us’ with ‘me’:

He has removed MY sins as far

from ME as the east is from the west.

When we accept Jesus Christ as our savior, He promises to forgive us of our sins. That means they are gone. We are free.

So why do we hold onto guilt?

Do we doubt God’s promise? Why are we unable to forgive ourselves, even when God has forgiven us?

I believe that feeling guilt or regret about what has happened in the past holds many of us captive to living in the past, when we should be embracing the present looking forward to God’s new plans for our lives. We need to accept the hope and forgiveness that we have already received through Jesus Christ.

How often do we hold onto guilt for our sins long after everyone else has moved on? Instead of learning from our mistakes and moving forward, why do we wallow in our despair?

I know that this is a terrific challenge for me. Sometimes I wonder if I get some enjoyment from wallowing in my past mistakes, since I spend so much time doing it instead of fixing the problem and forgetting it.

It’s important for us to learn from past mistakes so that we don’t repeat them in the future. Yet once we’ve learned, we need to move forward. Wallowing in the past will keep us stuck in the past and incapable of moving into the fresh start God has planned for us in the present.

Today’s verses remind me that God, in His infinite wisdom, forgives our sins in the blink of an eye because He can see the big picture. He knows that we have an entire lifetime to make mistakes and do better. Sometimes we will fail, but if we accept responsibility, ask forgiveness, and go forward to do better, we will mature as individuals.

Day 16 Reflections:

Let us accept God’s forgiveness and forgive ourselves at the same time. After all, if you forgave a friend for some transgression, wouldn’t you feel offended if the next time you saw them, they were still dwelling on the same issue?

God sees us as He created us, with all our faults but also with all our strengths and beauty. After all, we are His children.

DAY 17

“Don’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you.

I’ve called your name. You’re mine.

When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you.

When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down.

When you’re between a rock and a hard place,

it won’t be a dead end—

Because I am God, your personal God,

The Holy of Israel, your Savior.

I paid a huge price for you:

all of Egypt, with rich Cush and Seba thrown in!

That’s how much you mean to me!

That’s how much I love you!

I’d sell off the whole world to get you back,

trade the creation just for you.

5-7

“So don’t be afraid: I’m with you.

I’ll round up all your scattered children,

pull them in from east and west.

I’ll send orders north and south:

‘Send them back.

Return my sons from distant lands,

my daughters from faraway places.

I want them back, every last one who bears my name,

every man, woman, and child

Whom I created for my glory,

yes, personally formed and made each one.’”

Isaiah 43: 1-7, MSG

DON’T BE AFRAID,

I AM WITH YOU

When we are working hard on our dream, it’s easy to become isolated and feel incredibly lonely. Especially if we are struggling with the dream, or haven’t shared our heart’s desire with friends or family.

God assures us in this passage that we are never truly alone. He is with us, he has ‘called your name. You’re mine.’ What a beautiful statement!

God loves you more than you can imagine. When you experience set-backs along the road to your dream, when you feel as no one understands how you feel, there is One who you can turn to. God knows your heart and He says: ‘don’t be afraid: I’m with you.’

Whatever trial you are experiencing today, lay it at the foot of the cross. Give it to God. And then open your heart and experience the love of God, knowing that He is with you, right now.

Day 17 Reflections:

Create a list of five moments when God has provided for your needs just in time or when they were most needed. Alternatively, when He has answered a prayer that you thought would never be answered.

DAY 18

We put our hope in the Lord.

He is our help and our shield.

In him our hearts rejoice,

for we trust in his holy name.

Let your unfailing love surround

us Lord,

for our hope is in you alone.

~Psalm 33:20-22

I have strength for all things in Christ, Who empowers me [I am ready for anything, through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency.]

~Phillipians 4:13

RELEASE FEAR

There is no greater destroyer of dreams than fear. The fear of failing will stop us from embracing the uncertainty of pursuing our dreams. The fear of what others will think of us, or our dreams, will keep our dreams hidden away from the light they need to grow. Fear will stop us in our tracks.

There have been times in my life when I have been so paralyzed by fear that it has made me put away a dream of becoming a writer several times over the course of nearly twenty years. Fear of what other would think of me kept me from pursuing a childhood love of writing because I couldn’t stop hearing my eleventh grade English teacher’s critical voice in my head. What’s so terribly sad is that the teacher who said those words has been dead for over thirty years! Yet, even today, after I’ve written more than a few books, I can still feel the effect those words had on my heart. And how I chose a ‘safer’ career path, instead of one that would bring me joy.

What critical voice is keeping you from moving toward your dream?

When I am feeling fearful, my first reaction is to bury the fear and start doing anything other than facing the cause or the solution to getting rid of the fear. I’ll go for a walk, go shopping, read a book. Or if things get really bad, I’ll go to bed.

What’s the best way to overcome fear? The surest way to drive out fear is to take action.

For me, that means breaking down whatever I’m afraid of into little manageable pieces. I usually start by writing out a list of what needs to be done. Putting it down on paper takes the fear away and lets me see the thing as something to handled step by step. Then, I get to work. I choose one step and accomplish it. Then I move on to the next and the next. Momentum is key. Once you’ve started, keep going!

When we release our fear about the outcome of today and tomorrow, we can open our hearts to place our hope and faith in God.

When we release the overwhelming emotion of fear, we make space in our hearts for God’s unfailing love, which, as this psalm promises, will surround us.

Day 18 Reflections:

Today let’s pray for one another. Fear creeps into our lives in all sorts of ways and keeps us from becoming the women God wants us to be. Let’s ask God to release the fear in our lives and replace it with the confident assurance that when we are surrounded by His unfailing love, we are safe and have nothing to fear. And with that confidence, we can move forward toward the dream He has placed in our hearts.

DAY 19

God makes his people strong.
God gives his people peace.

~Psalm 29:11 (MSG)

But you, Israel, are my servant.
You’re Jacob, my first choice,
descendants of my good friend Abraham.

I pulled you in from all over the world,
called you in from every dark corner of the earth,
Telling you, ‘You’re my servant, serving on my side.
I’ve picked you. I haven’t dropped you.’
Don’t panic.

I’m with you.

There’s no need to fear for I’m your God.
I’ll give you strength. I’ll help you.
I’ll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.

~Isaiah 41:10

DON’T WORRY, I WILL GIVE YOU STRENGTH

Fear will kill a dream faster than anything else.

Fear of failure, fear of being laughed at, fear of disappointment. These are just of few of fears that can grow into huge monsters that block out the light that grows our fragile dreams into reality.

The enemy uses fear to stop us from fulfilling our God-given dream, because when our dream dies, so does a part of our heart.

But God tells us again and again that we are more than conquerors. We don’t have to give into fear, because we have the strength of God to call on whenever we need reinforcement.

Whenever you are feeling fearful or discouraged, the single most effective action you can take is to turn to God’s Word. The Bible is filled with God’s promises to stand with you in your hour of need. God goes before you, behind you, beside you. You have nothing to fear. God is with you, He will give you strength.

Day 19 Reflections:

To conquer your fears, turn to God’s Word, then turn to God and claim His Word aloud. There is great power in speaking God’s Word out loud. Try reading today’s Bible verses aloud. Repeat if necessary. Then, turn to a favorite Bible verse, or go to Biblegateway.com and begin searching for Bible verses that speak of God’s strength and faithfulness, and speak those verses aloud. I think you’ll be amazed at the results.

DAY 20

Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!” And Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead—and so was Sarah’s womb.

Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises.

And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.

For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

~Romans 4:18-23, 5:5 (MSG)

HE HAS GIVEN US THE HOLY SPIRIT

We know that God answers prayers.

We’ve seen the evidence in our own lives and in the lives of others.

But when we are in the midst of waiting, it’s easy to lose hope or forget that God has answered our prayers before. Or worse, we begin to believe that hope is lost and our prayers will never be answered.

The wonderful reminder in today’s reading from St. Paul’s message to the Romans is that even when Abraham faced seeming insurmountable evidence that God’s promise of a child could not be fulfilled, Abraham “never wavered in believing God’s promise”.

What makes that statement truly profound is that Abraham didn’t wait a couple months for God’s answer. Abraham waited many, many years.

Where should we turn during this time of waiting? Again, today’s passage provides the answer:

For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

When we feel like our answer is never going to arrive, rather than become discouraged, let’s seek the Holy Spirit, and ask that He will fill our hearts with His Love.

Let’s press forward in faith and love and with the knowledge that God is working everything out for our good.

Day 20 Reflections:

Today, let’s lay our unanswered prayers at the feet of Jesus and invoke the faith of Abraham. Let’s proclaim that we will “never waver in believing God’s promise” because “we know how dearly God loves us”.

DAY 21

“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

~Corinthians 4:16-18

WHAT WOULD THE HAPPY YOU DO?

Remember when WWJD was all the rage? Every kid on the block had a colorful rubber bracelet with those initials, which stood for: What Would Jesus Do? It was a potent reminder to consider what the Savior would do if He were in a similar situation.

I like to imagine that this slogan was meant to inspire us to act in a manner that would be pleasing to God, but it might also be a reminder for us to act in a way that was consistent with our best selves, since we are children of God.

A few weeks ago, when I was feeling rather Eeyore-ish and discouraged by the glacial progress of the dream hunt, I had an epiphany.

For a brief moment, I imagined an idealized version of myself living the life I wanted: where everything had fallen perfectly into place; where instead of feeling discouraged, I felt confident; where instead of being turned down for a job, I was doing my perfect career; and where instead of wondering where to live, I knew exactly where to go.

I savored that happy image, and then I thought: What if every morning I got up and asked, “What Would Happy Suzanne Do?”

Then I thought of specific tasks for each day that I would accomplish with a positive attitude, not worrying about the outcome, simply getting the work done with the best intent. Instead of perceiving a rejection as another indication that I (Eeyore) am a loser, I would ask “what can I learn from this, and how can I improve my performance next time?”

For example, when a writing proposal I’d made was rejected, instead of telling myself that this was a sure indication that I would never get hired, what if I said to myself, “Well there were other people who were also rejected, and maybe person who was hired wrote a better proposal. So, next time I will improve my proposal.”

I know, I know, this sounds like some feel good, “I’m okay, you’re okay” blather.

However, it turns out that there is scientific evidence for the benefits of using learned optimism to improve our outlook and therefore our performance and enjoyment of life. Last week while perusing the shelves at the thrift store, I picked up a copy of Dr. Susan Vaughan’s book Half Empty, Half Full: Understanding the Psychological Roots of Optimism.

In her book, she describes how our internal predisposition to pessimism or optimism colors our perception of external events, like success or failure. Based on studies with laboratory rats and examples from human case studies, she demonstrates that people who have a pessimistic outlook believe that failures are their fault and are destined to be perpetuated and success is discounted as a fluke. In contrast, optimists see failure as external to themselves (and their positive self-image) and temporary, something to be overcome the next time, when success is ultimately expected.

Dr. Vaughan writes that negative outlooks become hardwired in the limbic areas of our brains but can be changed through sustained positive thinking practice. While this book was originally published in 2000, several other books on the theme of “positive psychology” or the “science of happiness” have been published since, each substantiating and offering hope that as we change the way we perceive the world, our actions, and therefore our outcomes, will have more positive results.

From a practical standpoint, this makes sense: if you are pessimistic, you’re more likely to give up sooner, believing you are destined to fail. On the other hand, if you are an optimist, you see yourself as a winner and therefore are more likely to stay with a task and modify your approach until you find a way to succeed, because you believe that that outcome is as inevitable as the pessimist believes his failure. In other words, “As you think, so shall you become.”

Although I’ve always considered myself an optimist, I also realized that my core sense of self carried negative expectations to every endeavor. And quite frankly, I am tired of that burden. While I will always adore Eeyore, I’ve decided that I want to change my outlook on life. It hasn’t been easy; just this morning in bed, I started to cry as I wallowed in some negative thought. Rather than stay there and sink deeper into brooding, I got out of bed and got to work. And I immediately felt better. That’s what Happy Suzanne would do.

Day 21 Reflections:

What would happy you do today to move closer to your dream?

DAY 22

Jesus said: “Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.”

~Matthew 7:12

JESUS SAID

Today’s verse is known as the Golden Rule and is probably the most often quoted verse in the Bible, even when the speaker doesn’t know that it’s a verse from the Bible and one of the central teachings of Jesus Christ. Perhaps that is because of the universality of its sentiment.

After all, don’t we all wish that we could be treated as we treat others?

Really?

As I started to write this post, I was going to focus on what a lovely, peaceful world this would be if everyone else was just as kind and gentle as we were.

Smiley face.

Smiley face.

And then, just as I typed that sentence, my heart was convicted. I said a quick “Thank you, God” that there are moments when I am treated better than I have treated others.

I have sometimes treated other people unfairly, and if I’d faced the same treatment, I’d have been hurt and disappointed.

You see, that’s one of the true gems of this sentence. Jesus is asking us to hold a mirror up to ourselves and take an honest look at our reflection, at the beauty and the beast.

It also makes us realize what a miracle it is that when God looks at us through His compassion, He loves us fully, warts and all, and without end.

Amen.

Day 22 Reflections:

Is God speaking to you today about a relationship that you need to mend with His love? Are you caring for others, not only as you would like to be cared for but also as Jesus would want you to care for them?

DAY 23

So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.

We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.

~Colossians 1:9-14

THE MYSTERY OF PRAYER

Prayer, like much of our relationship with God, often feels very one-sided, lonely, mysterious, and perhaps like standing at the mouth of a cave and shouting into the darkness, hoping for a response. A relationship with God can seem like a lop-sided equation, a bet you make where you’re not going to know the outcome until after death, and perhaps not even then.

Therefore, you pray and then pause to observe the outcome. If it comes, was it just a natural coincidence of timing related to your own actions? Or was it divine intervention?

If you don’t receive the answer you were looking for, was it God turning his back on you? God and the evil one engaged in some cosmic wager, as in the case of Job? Were you somehow undeserving or being punished for a sin you were or weren’t aware of?

Why pray at all if the results are so uncertain?

I’ve written in a journal since the age of eleven out of a desperate need to get out of my head the thoughts that ramble around without ceasing or solution. I turn to God in prayer because I need to share with Him thoughts and feelings that I cannot share with anyone else. And I know that no matter how dark or desperate, sad or silly, I can share everything with Him, my Abba. So, it is only natural that over the years, I’ve combined the two activities and often write my prayers to God in my journal.

Prayer becomes the conversation that I can’t have with anyone else. It is the flow of confession that I’d be embarrassed to admit: the fears that overwhelm me, the wisdom that I know is hiding right behind some obsessive thought, the clarity I need because I’m afraid I don’t know what to do. It’s my way of reaching out and asking for help from God because I believe that He is there even though I’m often met with silence so profound that it leaves me wondering why I even try.

Yet even in the depths of doubt, I can’t help myself. I do believe that God is at work in the world and that we can and should seek guidance while we actively work toward solutions to our problems. Prayer does not absolve us of responsibility for our actions or outcomes, but I believe it can provide gentle direction when we are lost.

Day 23 Reflections:

If you have begun one already, today start a prayer journal of what answers or guidance you are seeking from God, and the prayers you are saying for others. As time goes by, check back on these pages and see how God has answered your prayers.

DAY 24

This, then, is how you should pray:

“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name, your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”

~Matthew 6:9-13

HALLOWED BE YOUR NAME

Perhaps the greatest gift of prayer is discovering God’s profound love for us. It is one thing to believe in a higher intelligence or universal mind. I think that is probably the easiest concept for an atheist to begin to accept.

However, to imagine that God actually loves us, is staggering. It requires us to believe that this entity must somehow know us as individuals, with all our messes and mistakes, and yet still find us worthy of love . . . A love coming from a source of perfection, that is still willing to love us in all of our imperfection.

God loves us deeply and infinitely more than we could ever imagine, especially when it seems as if we are standing alone and shouting into empty space. As someone who is well acquainted with that position, I will tell you that I cling desperately to my belief in God when I feel most alone and in need of some assurance.

If, like me, you are the risk-taking sort and decide to throw caution to the wind and pray at the mouth of the dark cave, where do you begin? Are there some special words that will guarantee an audience with the Almighty?

The short answer is: no.

The better answer is that prayer is most effective when it is authentic and comes from your heart.

Of course, prayer serves many functions in the course of our spiritual life. Praying together in church is sometimes all we need to feel part of a larger community, one of many voices lifting up praise or beseeching in one corporeal voice. Other times, prayer is a private act of gratitude where we “thank God” for the safe return of a loved one, or go through a daily recitation of all that we are grateful for but which we don’t want to take for granted.

As to the mechanics or setting for our more “serious” prayers, I think the best way to pray is that which works best for you in that moment. I have prayed on my knees. I have prayed by speaking aloud in a one-sided conversation as I walked with Henry, my Newfoundland, through the woods. I have prayed in a letter to God written in my journal. And most recently, I have fallen asleep as I repeated incessantly, “Please God”, in a whispered prayer that expressed so many fears of the future that only those two words were necessary, because God knew the rest.

And then what?

How do we know if God heard our prayers or if He will do anything about them?

That’s where the mystery, or challenge, of faith comes in. I believe that God will answer my prayers, that He does care, and will show his compassion in some tangible way. However, I also feel that part of the strength of prayer is that it allows us a private communion with God that in and of itself is a comfort.

I believe that when we go to Him in prayer, God reaches out and communicates His love to us in such a way that it impacts our lives for the better. I believe that we can deepen our relationship with God through prayer. Perhaps that is one of its most important functions. Not asking for this or that but coming closer to our Creator, and through that relationship growing and living better lives than we would have without it or without the experience of God in our lives.

Day 24 Reflections:

For the coming week, commit to spending a daily time of prayer with God. Try this: spend five minutes speaking with God in the morning, talking about the day ahead and your concerns. In the evening, spend another five minutes talking to God before bedtime about how your day went and thanking Him for being with you every minute of the day. My prayer for you is that after a week of talking with God each day, you will want to make it a habit for the rest of your life.

DAY 25

“Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. I will praise the Lord, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I have set the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”

~Psalm 16:5-8

PUTTING YOUR STORY IN GOD’S WORD

Submit to God and be at peace with Him;

in this way prosperity will come to you.

I believe that we can enrich our understanding of God’s promises when we pray them back to God, and claim those promises as our own.

When we are called on to trust God the most, we have the greatest opportunity to grow in our relationship with Him and to grow as individuals.

Open your Bible, find a verse that speaks to your situation, and pray that verse right back to God as if it was written from your perspective.

Day 25 Reflections:

I believe that when we pray God’s Word back to Him, with a humble spirit, we will be drawn into a closer communion with Him and will find not only answers to our prayers but also the peace that comes from God’s love.

Today find one verse that speaks to you and write it out, and pray it back to God. Memorize the verse and then pray it back to God throughout the day.

DAY 26

The Lord said [to Elijah], “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.

~1 Kings 19:11-13

GO OUT AND STAND ON THE MOUNTAIN

Why can’t I hear the voice of God?

Where is He when I feel abandoned and alone?

“I am here.”

This was God’s response when his prophet, Elijah, reached the end of his rope and was literally begging God to let him die because the burden of living had become too great.

God told Elijah that he would come to him, and he did. Not with a great show of force and fireworks. No. God chose a means that befitted the fragile psyche of the exhausted, depressed Elijah.

God was in the gentle whisper.

Sometimes, when I am feeling depressed and overwhelmed, this is exactly what I hope for. God’s gentle, comforting presence. But to get there, I need to go out on the mountain. I need to be willing to expose my deepest secrets and fears to God, allow myself to be vulnerable and no longer in hiding.

God is waiting for you and me to go and stand on the mountain. Are you ready? I’ll meet you there.

Day 26 Reflections:

In your journal, write down times in the past when you have felt the presence of God in your life. In the coming week, ask God to help you to become more aware of His presence in your life. Make a note of what happens.

DAY 27

Even now, says the Lord,

return to me with your whole heart,

with fasting, and weeping, and mourning;

Rend your hearts, not your garments,

and return to the Lord, your God.

For gracious and merciful is he,

slow to anger, rich in kindness,

and relenting in punishment.

Perhaps he will again relent

and leave behind him a blessing,

Offerings and libations

for the Lord, your God.

~Joel 2:12-14

WITH YOUR WHOLE HEART

When Mom and I went to Mass for Ash Wednesday, this beautiful passage from the book of Joel was one of the readings, and it stayed with me afterwards, especially the line: “Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the Lord, your God.”

God is interested in what is in our hearts. “Return to Me,” says God. Let’s use this time of pursuing our dreams as a journey of spiritual renewal in which we return to God and let Him speak to our hearts and renew our spirits.

I will confess that there have been times when I allowed my morning devotional to become a substitute for attending church, which it’s not meant to be. Personal daily devotions have one place in our spiritual life, and attending church belongs to the part of us that needs communion with others.

I am returning to God through my commitment to go back to church and work on a part of my faith that I’m not generally comfortable with, being part of a church community. I am choosing to overcome my public shyness and embrace my greater desire for communion with other Christians.

Day 27 Reflections:

Are you part of a regular church community? If not, will you make plans to find a local church to call you spiritual home?

DAY 28

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.

~Hebrews 10:23

DO WE EVER GROW UP?

I was unpacking the last of the boxes that were in storage in Florida when I came across one that was filled with pictures taken ten years ago. The pictures actually made me laugh as I looked at myself posed in front of the Duomo in Florence, Italy. I looked so earnest; I was trying so hard to appear fashionable because I’d recently lost fifty pounds and thought the new skinny me in my new wardrobe would be my key to happiness. It was, in some respects; I had a great time. Yet it was still the same old me inside, with all of the same old insecurities.

As I looked at those pictures, I wondered: Do we ever change over the years?

I guess the reason this is on my mind is that I recently had one of those “milestone” birthdays.

When I was younger, I always looked to the future and thought of the things I would accomplish and how different I would be at some future date. Like when I “grew up”.

As I looked at those pictures of me, then considered the row of journals that sit on my bookshelf spanning the course of twenty five years of my life, and as I unpacked that beautiful trousseau that I bought fifteen years ago to wear on the wedding night that never happened, I realized that really, despite all the milestones that come with age, we don’t actually change the core of who we are.

When I lived in New York and worked on Wall Street, I imagined the pinnacle of my life would be when I turned 45, and I pictured myself riding to the office each morning in the back of a limousine. Today, that would be my idea of hell. In fact, it was just that mental picture that inspired me to leave New York, nearly twenty years ago.

I never became that woman I thought I wanted to be. Instead, I did something completely different. Though I have finally achieved many of the things I hoped for, while other goals remain elusive, what I find the most disconcerting is that inside, I am still the uncertain young girl I thought I’d eventually outgrow.

I always thought that with time and accomplishing my goals, all those fears and insecurities would somehow melt away and with age I would become more confident. Surprisingly, I haven’t evolved into something different than I was back then. I’m still Suzanne, with all my overblown self-doubt, my fear that no one likes me, that I’ll always fall short no matter how hard I try, and that I am not talented enough to be the popular girl. And I wonder what the point of the journey is if we can never escape that person we wanted to change, no matter how much we accomplish or how far we travel from where we first began?

And then . . .

Just when I think I’ve found a great truth, and I’ve decided that the best course is to simply aim a little lower, I instead discover something that turns my conclusion on its head.

Recently my mother has begun to cook, which is something for which she never exhibited the patience or interest for the first eighty-three years of her life. Then this past weekend she picked up my old battered copy of Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking and decided she was going to try a few recipes. She, who has been willingly displaced from her home (by choosing to join me in Colorado like Naomi from the Biblical book of Ruth) and who chugs along on a heart that operates at forty percent of its original capacity, has created a new life for herself here and found a grace and contentment that she never had before. What she seems to know instinctively (she’s always been a woman of action rather than the self-absorbed navel gazing that I excel in) is how to make the most of where you are geographically and spiritually. And as a result, her life is much richer.

My mother’s example reminds me that when we are willing to grow in our circumstances and allow God to lead us in our daily lives, we can accomplish our dreams, even as they change to reflect our spiritual maturity.

With new perspective, I look at the pictures of who I was then and compare them with who I am now, and I realize that as slowly and surely as the flow of water over rocks, God has smoothed my rough edges. He has brought me into a closer walk with Him. My journey is not complete, but I can see progress. Although it has been at times a painful journey, with many detours and delays, I am finally realizing the dreams I first dreamt when I decided to leave New York, twenty years ago.

Do we ever grow up? I believe the answer is yes, with the grace of God we can grow up and become the women that we’ve always wanted to be and, more importantly, the women that God has created us to be through the dreams he put in our hearts.

Day 28 Reflections:

As you look back on the last ten or twenty years, how have your dreams changed? Is there one that you are still working on? Or have you embraced new dreams? Do you feel God calling you to revisit an old dream, or is He calling you to a new dream?

DAY 29

“Well, you’ve certainly been a great help to a helpless man! You came to the rescue just in the nick of time! What wonderful advice you’ve given to a mixed-up man! What amazing insights you’ve provided! Where in the world did you learn all this? How did you become so inspired?”

~Job 26:1-3

GOOD ADVICE ON GETTING UNSTUCK

After I bought my house in Colorado, a friend asked how my brother, John, had changed my mind about choosing this house. I thought I’d share that process with you, because it taught me an important lesson about getting unstuck.

I first saw this house back in September. I rejected it because I thought the ceilings were too low compared to the very high ceilings of the house I was renting at the time. However, I also sent my brother an email brochure of the property because he was interested in our house hunt. He immediately liked the house and encouraged me to give it further consideration.

Over the following months, I went back to the house about five times, each time convincing myself that this was not the house for me. In particular, I didn’t like the small room off of the living room, which was being used as a dining area, because of its low sloping ceiling.

By mid-November, John was calling almost daily for house hunting updates, because the landlord of the house I was renting had informed us that he was going to move back into the house by mid-December, which meant that I needed somewhere to move.

Finally, John suggested that he come out to Evergreen from Tampa for a couple days to look at the house with me. I accepted his offer, certain that if he saw the house in person, he would see things my way.

On a Sunday morning in late-November, the week before Thanksgiving and three weeks before we had to vacate our current home, John flew into Denver and I drove him straight to the house.

After he looked around for ten minutes, he sat down on the steps and said, “I don’t want to influence you, but I’d buy this house.” He then proceeded to go through my list of objections one by one and offered actual solutions that would fix the problems:

Don’t like a sloping ceiling? Build a gabled roof! Don’t like the master bath? Put in those pebbled floors you’ve always dreamed of!

Did I mention that John is also a building contractor with a great deal of experience with home remodels?

Suddenly, instead of seeing that house as a source of frustration, I was filled with ideas to create a place I would really love. Yes, it would take time and money . . . and it could be years before I would be able to accomplish everything. But instead of frustration, I had new projects to dream and plan! Something clicked in my mind, and I was able to shift my perspective and see the house differently. Instead of focusing on its perceived faults, I was able to see its real beauty. That’s probably why I feel so at home here now.

Two days later, as I was driving John to the airport for his flight home, I received the call that my offer on the house had been accepted.

On one level, this is a story about what a great brother I have (and I do) and how my family offered wonderful advice and support during a very stressful time (which they did, thank you Kathy!). But it’s also a story about how to get unstuck.

Sometimes we can become so entrenched in our own opinion and so close to the problem we are trying to solve that we feel paralyzed with indecision. I believe that this is when God may send other people into our lives to help us see our situation from a new perspective, one which will help us to move forward. However, we need to be open to receiving that advice.

After the dust settled, I asked John how he had known what to say to me. He said that he listened to my objections to the house as he would listen to a client. Then, when he saw the house in person, he was able to counter my “feelings” about the house with concrete solutions.

Luckily, because I respect my brother’s superior knowledge of houses, I was able to allow myself to look at things differently and thus move forward from a limited belief to excitement about new possibilities. The irony is that the house hadn’t changed a bit in the two months I’d been looking at it; only my perspective had changed.

When I face what seems like an insurmountable problem, or when I feel myself getting stuck by one view of a situation, I will remember that if I am willing to open my mind, the solution will appear from a different perspective.

As to that dining area that caused me such frustration? Turns out that when my own dining room set was in there, it looked beautiful and has become one of my favorite rooms in the house.

Day 29 Reflections:

Are you stuck? How might a different approach help you find a new solution? Do you have a friend or sibling who can offer wise counsel or a fresh perspective?

DAY 30

“Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. I will praise the Lord, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I have set the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”

~Psalm 16:5-8

As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”

~Luke 21:1-4

GIVING COMES IN MANY FORMS

When I was gainfully employed, I got into the habit of tithing, or giving ten percent of what I earned. It made me feel good to share what I’d earned, and I enjoyed directing money to charities that I believed in. Then, when I was just starting out in my new business venture, and I was building my business rather than earning money, I wasn’t able to give as much.

However, thanks to the example of my mother, I’ve learned that giving can be achieved in other ways. For instance, Mom volunteers for two hours each Tuesday at our local thrift store and two hours at the Senior Resource Center. Lately, she’s gotten into the habit of bringing a special treat with her, usually something I’ve baked, to share with the ladies at the Senior Resource Center.

This morning when I dropped her off, I watched her walk up the pathway to the entrance with a package of brownies that I’d made the day before. She stopped to speak with two ladies who attended the daily “senior daycare” at the center. After a moment, she handed one of the ladies one of the packages of brownies, touched the woman’s cheek, and then continued on her way.

Now I know two things: First, those brownies were intended for someone else, but there must have been something said that inspired Mom to give them to that particular woman. Second, Mom wasn’t feeling 100% that morning; her legs are weak, which means it’s difficult for her to walk.

And here’s what I learned: Giving comes in all forms, and these random acts of kindness can have just as great an impact as all the money I used to give away.

Day 30 Reflections:

Are you tithing today? Is that a goal you can work towards? What other ways can you begin to give back to God, to show your thanks for all that God has given to you?

DAY 31

We also have joy with our troubles, because we know that these troubles produce patience. And patience produces character, and character produces hope. And this hope will never disappoint us, because God has poured out his love to fill our hearts. He gave us his love through the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to us.

~Romans 5:3-5 (New Century Version)

TUNNEL VISION

Often when I am facing times of trial, I become caught up in tunnel vision where I only see where I am from the feedback of the moment. I lack the perspective of time and distance.

That limited perspective often leads me to see the glass as half empty rather than half full. And this attitude colors every event of every day so that even when I undertake a new thing, I have no hope in its success. I believe that because I have failed in the past, I will fail again. I discount myself, my talent, and my progress. In fact, I believe that I will never make progress. When I face disappointment after disappointment, I am unable to see the milestones that I’ve passed in the midst of the failures, and they become unnoticed achievements. That’s where I am now.

What I learned tonight is that I need to flip the perspective and see things from the other side, that each attempt is a lesson with valuable feedback, and if I choose to learn from that lesson and keep trying, it will bring me closer to my goal. And I need to remember the definition of faith, even when it seems impossible:

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

~Hebrews 11:1

Day 31 Reflections:

Focus on one challenge you’re currently facing. Write out a solution. Is it feasible? What could you do today toward making that solution a reality?

DAY 32

For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he may have enough to finish it; lest perhaps, after he has laid the foundation and is not able to finish, all those seeing begin to mock him, saying, “This man began to build and was not able to finish.”

~Luke 14:28-30

On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that no collections be made when I come.

~1 Corinthians 16:2

SAVING FOR A DREAM

There was a time when I was the queen of Neiman Marcus. Back in the day when I worked on Wall Street, I went to Neiman Marcus twice a year, Fall and Spring, to buy my business suits for the season. I bought five suits with matching blouses and spent what now seems like a ridiculous amount of money.

My priorities and circumstances have changed a great deal since then, not least of which is that one of my life goals is never to wear a business suit again. When I decided to become self-employed, one of the choices I had to make was to tighten my belt financially. Much of the “fun” spending I used to take for granted would have to stop until my business was on its financial feet.

Luckily, over the years, my money habits have changed along with my consumer desires. I’ve come to appreciate the pleasures of saving and investing rather than spending. I have learned how investing a small sum every month can add up to a nice sum over the years. I’ve come to appreciate the satisfaction that these small measures can bring over the momentary pleasure of retail therapy.

Which is not to say that I’ve stopped shopping, but that I’ve learned to shop for bargains. For instance, in Evergreen our only big box store is a Wal-Mart. There I found a $7 black puffy jacket in the men’s department that worked perfectly when the temperatures dropped. In fact, I bought two extras for my brother and his wife for their visit in March.

We also have a terrific thrift store that is run by volunteers from local churches and which uses 100 percent of their revenue to fund a local charity for people in need. There I’ve purchased a lamb’s wool Ralph Lauren sweater for $8, with the store tags still attached. I got a gently used Le Creuset Dutch oven for $4.

Admittedly, this focus on thrift has become sharpened since I’ve been without a regular paycheck. However, rather than feeling deprived, I feel grateful that my needs are being met in an abundant yet affordable way.

My evolution toward thrift by choice (and by need) has taught me a lot about how I want to spend my money. It is also a realization that there is a certain freedom that comes when you accept responsibility for choosing where you spend your money and what you choose to have in your life as a result.

Pursuing our dreams may mean choosing to sacrifice things we used to take for granted, such as impromptu shopping sprees or that extra vacation. But one reason God has asked us to be good stewards of our financial resources is so we can have the freedom to pursue our dreams.

Day 32 Reflections:

Do you have a savings account? Have you started saving for a rainy day, or to fund your dream, or perhaps for a new business? What would you be willing to give up or cut back on to start a “dream” savings account today?

DAY 33

So, friends, take a firm stand, feet on the ground and head high. Keep a tight grip on what you were taught, whether in personal conversation or by our letter. May Jesus himself and God our Father, who reached out in love and surprised you with gifts of unending help and confidence, put a fresh heart in you, invigorate your work, enliven your speech.

~2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 (MSG)

NO EXPIRATION DATE ON OUR DREAMS

When I was younger I relished change. A move cross-country was contemplated and accomplished at the drop of a hat. Advance planning? Job in place? Housing arranged? Why take the fun out of the adventure?

After I graduated from the University of Michigan and decided I wanted to fulfill my dream of living in New York and working on Wall Street, I packed my peacock blue Hartman luggage, booked a room at the YMCA on Lexington Ave., and flew to my destiny.

When I arrived that evening, I had $300 in my pocket, I was wearing white linen pants, a gold silk shirt, and with one phone call to a friend who was attending graduate school at Columbia, I was on the next subway to 112th Street and Broadway, home of Columbia University campus and Harlem.

That evening I spent hours talking with my friend and found out he was moving out of his apartment and he had a spare room to sublet. I never spent the night at the Y. I went back downtown the next morning, retrieved my luggage, and moved. Three months later, I had that job on Wall Street I’d dreamed of.

This example is one reason why I am a big believer in pursuing our dreams by taking risks. I believe that opportunities open when we lay the groundwork through our efforts and are then willing to step out in faith.

That was when I was in my twenties, when everything I touched turned to gold and every goal materialized with the application of hard work.

Now that I’m older, things have been different. I often live in fear that I’ve lost my mojo, that magical belief in myself that somehow makes everything turn out right.

I believe there is a tendency after we’ve reached a “certain age” to believe that dreams are only for the young and unencumbered.

This is what happened to me when I began the process of planning a move out west. For ten years, I’d dreamed of living in the mountains. But this time that gut “aha” feeling was missing. I knew I wanted to live in the mountains, I just couldn’t figure out which mountains. In the sporting world this is called “choking,” and it can hobble the best-trained athlete, reducing them from a well-oiled machine to a dull-eyed sluggard with the athletic prowess of a five-year-old.

For me, the choking sensation manifested as waking at 5 a.m. and realizing that I could no longer visualize my happy self, pulling into the driveway of my house in the mountains.

Instead, my thoughts were filled with anxious thoughts that I’d choose the wrong place, or a place where I wouldn’t be able to find a job because no one would hire me. Like the time ten years ago when I applied for a job with a publisher and, despite the prestige of my previous career as an Assistant Vice President at a New York Investment Bank, they wouldn’t even hire me as a secretary. I was crushed.

There have been a series of such disappointments, over the past fifteen years, that have overshadowed my previous accomplishments to such an extent that in moments such as these I can’t see anything but the possibility of failure.

I am a firm believer in the power of positive thinking. I know firsthand that we can use our positive thoughts in conjunction with a lot of hard work to create the lives we want. But at that moment, I was having a difficult time conjuring positive thoughts.

So I did two things to lend myself a hand:

First, I subscribed to and read a number of inspirational books. They are common but comforting reminders that our fear of the unknown can also be keeping us from our next great adventure.

Second, I reminded myself that I have experienced the most wonderful “aha” moments when I least expected them and that I only needed to do the work to show up ready. In fact, it’s when I was overthinking things and trying too hard to make things happen through my own efforts that I was stopped in my tracks.

After we’ve done the work, we should relax, get out of our own way and let the good things come. It’s okay if we don’t have all the answers just yet or even know how it’s going to turn out. We just have to trust God that it will all be perfect.

Day 33 Reflections:

There is no expiration date on the dream that God has put in our heart. What He has planned for our lives, He will fulfill no matter what our age or where we are in life.

Are you actively working on your dream or has frustration led you to let it slide to the wayside? What can you do today to fill it with life?

DAY 34

May He give you the desire of your heart

and make all your plans succeed.

We will shout for joy when you are

victorious

and will lift up our banners in the

name of our God.

May the Lord grant all your requests.

~Psalm 20:4-5

SETTING GOALS

When we ask God to help us achieve a long-held dream, it helps to be specific.

In other words, you not only need to know where you want to go, but how you intend to get there… step by step. Think of it this way: If you were going to drive from Seattle to Florida, there are a variety of highways you could take depending on whether you wanted to take the scenic route or the most direct, or whether it was summer or winter and weather conditions were a consideration.

The same goes with making the best plans for your dream. You need to consider where you are starting and where you want to end up, and then how you’re going to get there. Maybe you don’t know every step right now, but it would be useful to map out the first few steps.

I became a fan of Debbie Macomber not from reading her extensive fiction collection, but from reading Knit Together: Discover God’s Pattern for Your Life. This book has become one of my all-time favorites, and I highly recommend it for anyone pursuing a dream and desiring to align that dream with God’s plan for your life.

In this inspiring book, Debbie outlines her long journey to becoming a published author, how it took writing seven books over the course of five years before she was finally published. Now more than 70 million of her books have been published and she continues to write new ones each year, most recently focusing on her Blossom Street and Cedar Cove series.

What really resonated with me in Knit Together, and which she touches upon again in a recent novel titled: Twenty Wishes, was her belief in the power of setting goals, and writing down those goals as a means to focus our attention on their attainment.

Which, of course, got me thinking… what would my twenty wishes be? What are my goals, both short-term (for the coming year) and long-term (where do I want to be five and ten years from today?)

Sure the first few are easy: job, house. But after that? That’s where the fun comes in as we’ve dig deeper into the secret dreams and desires we’ve buried deep inside. I’d like you to work your own list and see where it leads.

Day 34 Reflections:

Now it’s you’re turn. Do you think you could come up with a list of twenty wishes? In Twenty Wishes, Anne Marie the main character, goes so far as creating a scrapbook that dedicates a page to illustrating each of her twenty wishes. Do you think it would make a difference if you wrote out, or created a scrap book of your wishes or goals?

DAY 35

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

FINDING WHERE YOU FIT

When we are working on our dream, sometimes we may know the desire of our heart, but not where that would fit into our lives.

That’s where a little homework can help us. When I was going through my own job search a few years ago, I went to our local library and found a wealth of resources.

For instance, I began reading The Career Guide for Creative and Unconventional People, by Carol Eikleberry. In one section, she focused on a skills assessment, to see where your skills matched with particular career types. How would you answer the following questions:

1. What are you doing when you are so engrossed or absorbed or involved that you lose track of time?

2. In what kinds of activities, relative to yourself, not to others, do you make the boldest choices and take the greatest risks?

3. What are your occupational daydreams? Look for themes in the kinds of work you imagined yourself doing as a kid.

4. How quickly do you accomplish certain tasks?

The author, Carol Eikleberry recommends taking the Ball Aptitude Battery, or the O*Net Ability Profiler or the skills analysis in What Color is Your Parachute to identify your natural skills and with that information to learn which jobs use those skills. The result being that if we are doing a job that uses skills we enjoy, we will enjoy our jobs.

Eikleberry then breaks the skills into three categories by how the skill is utilized. Are you working with ideas, with people, with things?:

• Information e.g. writers, coordinators, investigators

• People e.g. mentors, instructors, supervisors

• Things e.g. designers, food preparers, model builders

Once you have identified a category that is a fit with your skills, you are directed to a list of careers that match these criteria. And then the fun begins, taking action to obtain or create a career that best fits your identified skills and interests.

Day 35 Reflections:

When God places a dream in our heart, He often leaves it up to us to do the ‘homework’ of discovering how to use that dream in our every day lives. That might mean a trip to the library or conversations with people who are doing the work that you’d like to do. Spend some time this week finding one person who is doing what you’d like to be doing, ask them how they got started.

DAY 36

“Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—

when they see the love you have for each other.”

~John 13:33-36

BLESSINGS AT A CAR WASH

Sometimes it’s the random occurrences in unexpected places that stay with us the longest. This morning I was in my car on my way home from a morning workout. I passed a couple kids on the side of the road holding signs which read:

“FREE CAR WASH… really! No donations allowed!”

I didn’t believe it, but I decided to turn around and check it out it for two reasons. First, Petunia, my precious white SUV, was sorely in need of a bath. And second, I’m a sucker for school car washes and the opportunity to help kids raise money for whatever they need.

They waved me in like deckhands on an aircraft carrier and I glided Petunia into our designated slot. They greeted me with smiles and suggested I take a seat in one of the chairs under a nearby tree while they got to work. I asked what group this is benefiting and was surprised to find out that the car wash was a monthly service project of Calvary Chapel, a local church that has grown over the years from a handful of people meeting in a warehouse to literally thousands that meet on their main campus and several satellite locations around town. I not-so-subtly fingered the small cross at my neck, hoping to signal that the proselytizing wasn’t necessary. After a quick question asking what church I attended, and an assurance that they really wouldn’t accept my donation, the subject changed to general conversation.

We discussed my upcoming move and my doubts and fears about going into the unknown and not being sure that I was selecting the right place. We talked about faith and the assurance that surely God did have a plan for my life and would open or close doors as I moved forward. I think that’s the key, that perhaps God can help us best when we take the initiative first; you know that old physics equation about momentum. The woman offered to pray for me. We held hands and bowed our heads.

Later, I was struck that although I was the one who stopped, hoping to bless someone else, I was the one who was blessed.

We never know how profoundly our random acts of kindness will bless others. Which may be exactly why they are so important to undertake, especially when we are working on our own dreams.

By making that effort to get outside ourselves, we are acknowledging that we are not islands, that others are pursuing their own dreams, and that we can help. By giving, we receive the blessing of knowing that we are not alone.

Day 36 Reflections:

You knew this was coming, didn’t you! This week, create an opportunity to do one random act of kindness for a stranger. It can be as simple as putting an extra quarter in someone’s parking meter (especially if it’s about to expire!) or offering prayer for someone on Facebook. The idea is that we are extending an unexpected act of kindness. It doesn’t have to be time-consuming or expensive, just heartfelt.

DAY 37

“You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.”

~Matthew 17:20

MUSTARD SEED FAITH

I’m going to let you in on a big secret. I often struggle with holding onto ‘Mustard Seed’ faith when I’m in the middle of a waiting period.

I’ll share and even greater confession… today, as I put the finishing touches on the edits for this book, my heart is saying, “Who am I to share encouraging promises from God’ Word, when so many of my prayers remain unanswered and my dream of twenty years looks like it might crumble into ashes?”

By recalling God’s past provision, we can reassure ourselves that what He has done in the past, He will do again in the future.

Day 37 Reflections:

I believe our faith can move mountains.

Because this kind of faith is so powerful, it can also be very scary to believe in, to embrace, and to give wholly to God. Especially when that faith surrounds our most desperately offered prayers.

Still, during these moments, I believe that when we turn toward God, He will respond. We will be comforted by His nearness.

Take a moment today and open your heart to God. Ask Him to take your mustard seed faith and move the mountains in your life.

DAY 38

What about the man who trusts in God

and is committed to His will and purposes?

He is a man who is rich indeed

Even amid the circumstances of poverty,

the wealth and blessing of God

are within his reach.

He is a man with purpose and meaning in his life.

Even amid the disorder and void

of this temporal existence,

he is aware of God’s concern and love for him.

He is a man who walks unafraid.

The threats of violence or prophecies of doom

do not detract from his validity

nor alter his course.

He is a man who relates to his fellow beings.

He identifies with them

in their sorrows and complaints

and share with them his life and his gifts.

He is the man who is truly happy

and through whom our God is working out

His purposes in this world today.

~Psalm 112

TRUSTING GOD WITH EVERY DREAM

I’ve just finished reading Your Beautiful Purpose: Discovering and Enjoying What God Can Do Through You by Susie Larson. It’s an amazing book that I believe will speak to anyone who is thinking about their life’s purpose, dealing with fear of failure as they undertake that purpose, or what to do when you face obstacles along the way.

In other words, it’s a timely book for me. And perhaps you, too?

At the end of each chapter, Susie presents questions and Bible readings for reflection. Today, one of the Bible readings was focused on Psalm 112.

I’ve included that psalm above… taken from a very interesting translation that I found in our local thrift store. It comes from a book titled: Psalms/Now by Leslie F. Brandt, it was published in 1973 and is Brandt’s personal translation of the Psalms. Since I love reading the Psalms, I was particularly drawn to the plain-spoken, intimate language.

In the study questions for this psalm, Susie asks us to look at the actions God is calling us to fulfill. I’ve highlighted and enlarged those qualities above.

What is striking to me, is that when you go back and read the highlighted sentences, you find the keys to a happier, more productive life.

Not only is this a source of reassurance, it’s a wonderful example of how God speaks to us through His Word… no, not by magic, just by a closer reading.

Day 38 Reflections:

Are you willing to turn your dream over to God? Do you trust that God has an even bigger vision of your dream than you could ever imagine? Will you join me to trust God with your present and your future?

DAY 39

14-18 “It’s also like a man going off on an extended trip. He called his servants together and delegated responsibilities. To one he gave five thousand dollars, to another two thousand, to a third one thousand, depending on their abilities. Then he left. Right off, the first servant went to work and doubled his master’s investment. The second did the same. But the man with the single thousand dug a hole and carefully buried his master’s money.

19-21 “After a long absence, the master of those three servants came back and settled up with them. The one given five thousand dollars showed him how he had doubled his investment. His master commended him: ‘Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.’

22-23 “The servant with the two thousand showed how he also had doubled his master’s investment. His master commended him: ‘Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.’

24-25 “The servant given one thousand said, ‘Master, I know you have high standards and hate careless ways, that you demand the best and make no allowances for error. I was afraid I might disappoint you, so I found a good hiding place and secured your money. Here it is, safe and sound down to the last cent.’

26-27 “The master was furious. ‘That’s a terrible way to live! It’s criminal to live cautiously like that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least? The least you could have done would have been to invest the sum with the bankers, where at least I would have gotten a little interest.

28-30 “‘Take the thousand and give it to the one who risked the most. And get rid of this “play-it-safe” who won’t go out on a limb. Throw him out into utter darkness.’

~Matthew 25: 14-30

ARE YOU USING YOUR GOD-GIVEN TALENT?

I’m sure you’re familiar with the parable of the talents. In Jesus’ day, ‘talents’ referred to money and in this parable, Jesus’ described how each of the three servants who received it invested that money.

Interestingly, we can say the God is instructing us in a similar way when He asks us how we are using the God-given talents we have received.

The dream that you hold is very likely a perfect match to the special talent or desire that God has placed in your heart. In other words, were you the one who always took in stray pets and nursed them back to health? Maybe you are being called to become a veterinarian, or a vet tech, or a volunteer at a local shelter. Did you set up a classroom in your bedroom and line up the neighborhood kids (or your dolls, if there were no willing participants) to play school? Perhaps you are being called to teach in a school, or at your church’s Sunday school, or to homeschool.

In other words, are you using your talents to bring your dream, God’s purpose for your life, to fruition? Are you willing to develop your talents through hard work, study, and times of testing, without giving up, to fulfill God’s purpose for you?

Day 39 Reflections:

Are you willing to give God your best work, and invest your talents to their fullest potential?

If not, what’s holding you back?

Today, talk to God and share your doubts and fears. And see what He says.

DAY 40

When everything was hopeless, Abraham believed anyway, deciding to live not on the basis of what he saw he couldn’t do but on what God said he would do. And so he was made father of a multitude of peoples. God himself said to him, “You’re going to have a big family, Abraham!” Abraham didn’t focus on his own impotence and say, “It’s hopeless. This hundred-year-old body could never father a child.” Nor did he survey Sarah’s decades of infertility and give up. He didn’t tiptoe around God’s promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. He plunged into the promise and came up strong, ready for God, sure that God would make good on what he had said. That’s why it is said, “Abraham was declared fit before God by trusting God to set him right.” But it’s not just Abraham.

~Romans 4:18-23 (The Message)

CLOSING DOORS

First, I want to clarify that I am a big fan of a verse from the book of Genesis that can be paraphrased as: “Abraham feared the Lord, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

A fear of God is something I live by. Not a cowering fear, but a healthy respect. But that is just one facet of my complex relationship with the Almighty. My relationship with God is often times like that of a daughter and a father. A bratty adolescent daughter…

I admire the women who seem to have a deep and abiding relationship with God, where they regularly hear Him speak to them through prayer, or the Bible, or others. Their faith is unswerving and reinforced by these regular communications. My relationship with God has been more complicated, often hallmarked by God’s silence and my petulant rants.

There have been moments of great frustration, which caused me to turn my back on God, as a child folds its arms over its chest and says to its parent, “I’m not talking to you anymore!” That’s me. I pout; I stamp my foot; I shout that I’ve had enough and I’m not ever going to say another stupid prayer again in my life because obviously God’s not listening. Then I peek over my shoulder and repeat my threat again, just for good measure.

And this is when I’m sure that God laughs.

Because God knows me all too well. He knows that I find my ongoing dialogue with Him too irresistible to ever stop. Too hopeful to ever stop hoping. Too lonely to ever consider the silence that would grow larger without those prayers.

I have seen the hand of God in small ways and large. I have watched my needs provided for when I was willing to be guided, to act sensibly, and to take action. I have seen my mother healed when her doctors made grave prognosis.

I have seen myself mature over the years, “put away childish things”, accept responsibility for my actions, and come to understand that overnight sensations and miracles are usually built on a foundation of hard work. Still, there are other times when I have cried in frustration, “Why not this prayer that means so much to me? Why can’t you answer this one?”

Parker J. Palmer writes in Let Your Life Speak, that during his own search for meaning and silence from God, he turned to a life-long Quaker for advice:

“Ruth,” I said, “people keep telling me that ‘way will open’ Well I sit in the silence, I pray, I listen for my calling, but way is not opening. I’ve been trying to find my vocation for a long time, and I still don’t have the foggiest idea of what I’m meant to do. Way may open for other people, but it’s sure not opening for me.”

Ruth’s reply was a model of Quaker plain-speaking:

“In sixty-plus years of living, way has never opened in front of me… . But a lot of way has closed behind me, and that’s had the same guiding effect.”

When I think of all the doors that have been closed, sometimes in the most painful ways, I wonder if that is another way that God speaks to us. And I wonder if, as Parker J. Palmer goes on to say, when we encounter those closed doors, we need to look around at all the doors that remain open for us to try, rather than getting stuck in a dead end. I like that perspective, to turn around and focus on all the possibilities that remain open to try, new paths that we would not have considered if we’d received our first choice.

Day 40 Reflections:

My hope is that your prayers are being answered in your life today. Perhaps in small incremental steps that you take each day and which are so small that you cannot see your progress, but which someday you will look back on and see that you have found the answer and see God’s hand guiding you all along.

DAY 41

And I am certain that God, who began a good work in you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

~Philippians 1:6

FINISH WHAT GOD HAS STARTED

Throughout this book I’ve stated that God has placed a dream in your heart that He wants you to fulfill. Your job is to discover that dream, commit to bringing it to life for the glory of God, and sticking with it until it’s done.

God wants you to fulfill your purpose because it’s going to make you a better person, it’s going to bring you into a closer relationship with God, and bringing God glory through the use of your God-given talents is the reason you are here!

The important key to this journey is to remember that God doesn’t give you a dream and say, “Good luck!” and walk away. No, He promises that the dream He placed in your heart, is one that He will help you to fulfill. He specifically promises that the work He began in you, He will see through to the end.

Here’s our part: Knowing that God will stick with us until our work is complete, our job is not to quit when the going gets tough. Knowing that God is standing at the finish line, cheering us on, we can continue through the obstacles that will inevitably come our way. God won’t give up on us, we shouldn’t give up on ourselves either.

Day 41 Reflections:

Are you facing an obstacle in the pursuit of your dream? Don’t give up! Turn it over to God, remember His promise to finish the good work He has begun in you. And then, figure out one small step you can take today to move forward.

DAY 42

Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer[a] is overcome by some sin, you who are godly[b] should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. 2 Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ. 3 If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important. 4 Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else. 5 For we are each responsible for our own conduct.

~Nem 8:8-10

COMPARISONS AND COMPETITION

Ah, the green-eyed monster…

Yesterday we talked about how not to give up when we face obstacles.

Today, we need to talk about another challenge we might face when the going gets tough… comparing our dream and accomplishments to others. Especially comparing our results to someone who appears to be more successful.

What do you do when a friend announces that she feels called to the same dream as you? How do you react when a friend achieves success in her chosen field, while you still struggle to gain a foothold?

The desire to compare our performance with someone else, or even to feel in competition with them, will happen whenever we encounter a delay in our progress. It will grow in intensity when we encounter setbacks, or enter into a period of waiting. The temptations to compare, compete, or feel jealousy grows out frustration and fear.

Our challenge during these times is to keep our focus on God’s unique plan for our life. We need to draw closer to God during these times of waiting and remember that we are on God’s timetable, no one else’s.

Believe me, I know it’s difficult. It’s something I struggle with all the time. I’m the type of person who wants to sprint ahead and see immediate results. And when God tells me to wait, I get frustrated.

But I’ve also learned the wonderful closeness that I have gained when I stop comparing my progress to someone else, and focus on God’s plan for my life.

Day 42 Reflections:

We don’t have to compare ourselves to others. We can be confident that God has a special plan for our lives that works perfectly for us. When we are tempted to compare our work to someone else, let’s pause and seek God’s plan, knowing His way is the best way. Seek God in prayer and ask Him to share His joy and His strength with you.

DAY 43

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

~Colossians 3:17 NIV

DO ALL IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST

When we dedicate our plans to God, we can be sure that He will work with us and through us to bring out the best outcome.

There are two important reasons to dedicate your dream in the name of Jesus Christ.

First, you want to affirm that you are in agreement with God’s will for your life. By dedicating your dream in the name of Jesus, you are submitting the outcome of the dream to God’s perfect will for your life, and agreeing that God’s way is the best way.

Second, you are inviting God to direct your steps along the path of reaching your dream. You are asking Him to bless and protect your dream.

When you submit your dream under the name of Jesus, you are asking God to place this dream within the entire context of His perfect plan for your life.

What could be better than that?

Day 43 Reflections:

Today, have a talk with God and dedicate your dream to Him. Ask Jesus to work in your life, to show you how and where you should move next toward the fulfillment of your dream. Be open to submitting your dream to God, and you will be amazed at what He will do in your life.

DAY 44

Though the Lord gave you adversity for food and suffering for drink,

He will still be with you to teach you.

You will see your teacher with your own eyes.

Your own ears will hear Him.

Right behind you a voice will say,

“This is the way you should go,”

whether to the right or to the left.

~Isaiah 30:20-22

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for His name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the darkest valley,

I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Surely Your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

~Psalm 23

GOD REFRESHES MY SOUL

Enjoying a close relationship with God will refresh our soul, anoint our heads with God’s blessing, and keep us safe as we walk through dark valleys.

As we journey with God toward the fulfillment of our dream, we are also working with God, not just on our dream, but on ourselves. And I will bet, that God is much more interested in the progress we make in improving our souls, than in achieving our dream. Which is why these two things are so often linked together. Achieving our dream will cause us to learn new skills, stretch our patience, and become better individuals. It will also cause us to draw closer to God if we want to achieve God’s best for us, at the same time.

During these times when we can’t readily measure our progress, having God’s scripture always in front of our eyes will be a constant reminder that we are not alone. That God will refresh our souls and guide us through the valley as long as we call on Him to direct our steps.

Day 44 Reflections:

I truly believe that when we face our darkest moments, if we will turn to God in prayer and seek His comfort through His Word, we will find our hearts and minds healed.

On a note card, write down a verse that is speaking to your need today and place it on your desk or on your dresser or next to the window in the kitchen, anywhere you will be able to see it several times a day. Let it be a gentle reminder that God is with you.

DAY 45

Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth;

meditate on it day and night,

so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.

Then you will be prosperous and successful.

Have I not commanded you?

Be strong and courageous.

Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged,

for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

~Joshua 1:8-9

SALVATION

As I mentioned in the Introduction, the greatest gift I received during my walk through the Bible was discovering that God is always with us.

He never forsakes us.

He never leaves us.

I believe that God longs to take care of us, to show us every day that we are dearly loved.

The greatest gifts that God longs to give us are the love, salvation, and eternal life provided through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus.

Best of all, receiving this gift is incredibly easy. When we receive the love of God that was manifested through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus, we receive the forgiveness of our sins and a perfect salvation that means we will never be separated from God’s love.

Day 45 Reflections:

Have you asked God to forgive you of your sins, to come into your heart, and to heal your broken places?

If not, let’s pray together now: Jesus, I thank You for dying for my sins and for rising again to give me new life through You. I ask You to forgive me of my sins, I accept Your salvation, and I want You to come into my heart and be my Lord forever. Amen.

DAY 46

When my heart was grieved

and my spirit embittered,

I was senseless and ignorant;

I was a brute beast before you.

Yet I am always with You;

You hold me by my right hand.

You guide me with Your counsel,

and afterward You will take me

into glory.

~Psalm 73:21-24

MY HEART WAS GRIEVED

Depending on the scope of our dream, bringing it to life can take days, weeks, or years. The bigger the dream the greater focus it will require of us. That means we need to maintain our determination to stick with it, whether the journey is smooth or rocky.

It’s easy to sing praises to God when we are sailing toward our dream on calm seas and a gentle breeze.

On other hand, when we encounter rough seas and dark clouds fill the horizon, we may be tempted to head for shore.

The first verse in this passage from Psalm 73, perfectly reflected what the depths of those hopeless days feel like to me.

I’m sharing this because I want you to understand that drawing close to God means having the courage to share all of our thoughts and feelings with Him.

All of them. Yes, even the ugly, embarrassing, you’d-be-mortified-if-your-mother-or-best-friend-knew-you-had-such thoughts and feelings.

Don’t be afraid that God can’t handle your anger or fear or tears. He can and He will.

Yes. God is already aware of all of your thoughts.

So why am I suggesting you sit down and pour out your heart to God? Why do I think confessing all of these horrible, tearful, angry thoughts to God will actually do wonders for your relationship with God?

Because God is nearest in our broken times, that’s when He does His best work in us and through us. As I poured out my heart, God showed His presence time and time again. By the end of the day, I truly felt at peace.

Which is exactly the promise that we read in the second paragraph. No matter how petulant we become, God is always with us; He will guide us through the tough times if we just take His hand and walk with Him.

Thank You, God.

Day 46 Reflections:

When you honestly share all of your emotions with God, you will find that your anger and sadness will become lighter and will be replaced with a spirit of God’s love for you. When you dump all of those thoughts, you’ll be making room in your heart and mind for more of God’s thoughts about you, for His love for you.

When there is less of your negative noise buzzing in the background, there is more space for God’s voice to reach you.

DAY 47

I love God because He listened to me,

listened as I begged for mercy.

He listened so intently

as I laid out my case before Him.

~Psalm 116

HE LISTENED SO INTENTLY

Do you actively listen for God’s voice, when you are praying?

I admit, this is one of the greatest challenges in my relationship with God. It seems I’m a great talker, but a terrible listener.

Today’s verse reminds me of a walk through the woods yesterday. As my dogs and I walked through a grove of Aspen, I talked aloud to God about my career plans, my need for an affirmation that I am on the right path, and that I will be able to make a go of this.

Unfortunately, I didn’t hear an answer. In fact, I’m not sure I can say I’ve ever heard a word from God.

I know some people who have, and I believe my problem is that I’m not very good at listening.

I’m very good at talking.

One of my greatest struggles in my relationship with God is feeling like I never hear from Him. I’m never quite sure that He’s directing my steps, because I never hear His directions.

Which is exactly why I believe that after we’ve poured out our hearts to God, we need to sit quietly and listen.

Today’s verse was a reassurance that even though I can’t hear Him speaking to me, God is still listening. And because His mercy and patience are infinite, He will continue to listen as long as we need to talk.

God will continue to listen for as long as it takes us to finally get to a place where we are ready to listen to Him.

At some point, we need to stop talking so that we can hear God.

Day 47 Reflections:

The next time you’re feeling as if your prayers aren’t being heard, try a long silent walk through the woods, or try sitting in silence. (Can’t find a quiet corner at home? Your local library might be a good place to spend a quiet hour.) As you walk, or sit, in silence, turn your thoughts inward, invite the Holy Spirit to come into your heart and speak to you, and then listen for the gentle whisper of God.

DAY 48

Has God forgotten to be gracious?

Has He slammed the door on His compassion?

And I said, “This is my fate;

the Most High has turned His

hand against me.”

But then I recall all You have done

O Lord; I remember Your wonderful

deeds of long ago.

They are constantly in my thoughts.

I cannot stop thinking about Your mighty works.

~Psalm 77:9-12

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow Him. Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on Him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

~Colossians 2:6-7

GOD NEVER FORGETS YOU

God never forgets you, though at times it must feel that way when we encounter God’s silence. We are working on our dream, and waiting for the crop that we have sowed to be ready for the harvest. But it seems that God has said ‘Not yet’.

Rather than let anxiety and feelings of frustration build up in our heart and mind, let’s try an exercise that will not only allow us to pour out our hearts to God, but also provide a release for all those pent-up emotions.

Today I want to suggest that you write a letter.

Begin with “Dear God:”.

Then, writing as fast as you can, so that your mind can’t censor your words, pour out your thoughts, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Share everything with God.

That’s what we’ve found in the first of today’s passages. The writer is pouring out his heart to his Lord: Where has God gone? Has He turned His back on me? Has God forgotten me? Left me without hope?

That raw honesty is what God wants from us if we are to have a truly honest relationship with Him.

I suggest you write this part of your letter to God as fast as you can because sometimes it’s embarrassing for us to really express our heartfelt emotions to God. We are taught to view God as a stern father-figure, instead of a loving, compassionate God who loves us without ending.

Once you’ve emptied yourself of your pain, end this letter with your list of gratitude and praise to God, just as the Psalmist recalls God’s “wonderful deeds of long ago”.

And finally, the verse in Colossians reminds us that after we have received Christ as our savior, we must grow in our relationship with Him. We must “let our roots grow” so that we can create a foundation that will see us through troubling times.

That is my hope for you. As you pour out your heart to God and thank Him for the blessings you have already received, you will grow closer to God and receive a relationship that will last a lifetime and beyond.

Day 48 Reflections:

When we pursue God, He rewards us with love and a relationship that will grow deeper over time. A relationship that will never falter and will enrich our lives until our very last day on Earth.

God wants us to have an active, daily walk with Him. As with any relationship, the more time and thought you put into your relationship with God, the closer you grow with God and in your understanding of His guidance in your dream.

DAY 49

Stop at the crossroads and look around.

Ask for the old, Godly way, and walk in it.

Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls. But you reply, ‘No, that’s not the road we want!’

I posted watchmen over you who said,

‘Listen for the sound of the alarm.’

But you replied, ‘No! We won’t pay attention!’

~Jeremiah 6:16-17

Don’t let anyone capture you

with empty philosophies and

high-sounding nonsense that come from

human thinking and from the spiritual

power of this world, rather than from

Christ.

For in Christ lives all the fullness

of God in a human body. So you also are

complete though your union with Christ, who is the

head over every ruler and authority.

~Colossians 2:8-10

IN CHRIST LIVES ALL THE FULLNESS OF GOD

Do you read the Bible using a favorite translation or do you switch back and forth between different translations?

During my year of reading through the Bible, I found that when a Bible verse really spoke to my heart, I wanted to read it in different translations to fully explore the nuanced meaning of the verse.

When I was doing my Bible-in-a-Year journey, I often found that a reading in the New Testament echoed a message that spoke to me first in that day’s Old Testament reading.

So that the two readings reinforced each other. What a wonderful adventure it was to see how the life and teachings of Jesus were a living embodiment of Old Testament prophesy.

What practical advice I received in the passage from Jeremiah! It reminded me that so often I ask God for an answer to prayer, and then when I receive it, I say, “No, no, that’s not what I had in mind. I wanted a different answer.”

As if answers from God were like slips of paper pulled from a fortune cookie. If you don’t like the first answer, open the next cookie and see what that one says.

In this passage, God reminds us that if we walk in the Godly path He has shown us, everything will work out.

The New Testament passage from Colossians expands on this lesson by reminding us that we shouldn’t get caught up in the latest fads in thought, in trying to find our own way, but that through Christ, we have all that we need and that He will guide us.

Day 49 Reflections:

What translation of the Bible do you use? Do you use this because it’s the one you’ve always used, or because you enjoy the way it ‘reads’? Today, go to a Bible website like: www.biblegateway.com and try today’s verses (Jeremiah 6:16-17, Colossians 2:8-10) in different translations. Does one version or another help to clarify your understanding or give you a fresh perspective on a familiar verse?

DAY 50

I’ll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home. I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out; plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.

When you call on Me, when you come and pray to Me, I’ll listen.

When you come looking for Me, you’ll find Me.

Yes, when you get serious about finding Me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.

~Jeremiah 29:11-13

“I’LL SHOW UP…”

You’ve probably read Jeremiah 29:11 in several places and in many different translations. I believe it’s one of most quoted promises of the Bible. Which isn’t surprising since it’s wonderfully hopeful.

Of course, holding onto the promise of this hope grows increasingly difficult when we are in the midst of waiting, and it feels as if our prayers will never be answered.

We pray, “How much longer do I have to wait, God?”

When we can’t see the way forward, it’s reassuring to have a reminder that God has a plan, perfect for each one of us, that He will carry out if we are obedient to His Will and allow Him to work in our lives. It’s difficult to hold onto that trust when we see no evidence of change in our lives. However, if we believe that God is truthful and faithful, then we can hold onto the promise that God will never fail us, that He will answer our prayer in due time.

That trust, that willingness to work in faith, even when we don’t know how it’s all going to turn out, is our challenge today.

Day 50 Reflections:

Look up Proverbs 3:5-12—Trusting God is not a passive activity, it’s a call to action. How is God calling you to trust Him in the little things, so that you can trust Him with your dream?

DAY 51

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us

what is true and to make

us realize what is wrong in our lives.

It corrects us when we are wrong and

teaches us to do what is right.

God uses it to prepare and equip

his people to do every good work.

~2 Timothy 3:16-17

I cried out, “I am slipping!”

but Your unfailing love, O Lord,

supported me.

When doubts filled my mind,

Your comfort gave me renewed

hope and cheer.

~Psalm 94:18-19

I CRIED OUT,

“I AM SLIPPING!”

My favorite verses in the Bible are the ones that remind me of God’s love and of His desire to answer our prayers and provide the “desires of our hearts”.

But today’s verse, from 2nd Timothy, is a reminder that God’s Word is also there to show us what is wrong in our lives. And as result, some of our prayers will not be answered with a “yes” from God when they violate His laws or when they are not in His perfect plan for our life.

When we face this conflict between what we want and what God’s Word teaches, it can create some of the most difficult moments in our walk with God.

As I look back on my life, I understand now that there were some very important moments when my unanswered prayer was actually God’s greatest blessing. He was subtly steering me in the way He wanted me to go because His plan was so much better than what I was asking for with my shortsighted vision.

How about you? Can you recall a few prayers that you are happy went “unanswered” by God?

As we go through the day, let’s recall this verse:

When doubts filled my mind,

Your comfort gave me renewed

hope and cheer.

What an encouraging message to know that God is with us throughout the day to lift us up and remind us that He is our greatest cheerleader, that He believes in us even when we lose confidence in our own abilities.

Day 51 Reflections:

When we face a “no” from God or an unanswered prayer, and doubt fills our mind, let us remember those same answers held unexpected blessings from God in the past. Remember, God only wants the very best for us!

Take five minutes and recall the unanswered prayers or the “No”s you are grateful for! Thank God for His wisdom and guidance.

DAY 52

A stone is heavy and sand is weighty,

but the resentment caused by a fool is

even heavier.

~Proverbs 27:3

STUMBLING BLOCKS IN OUR PATH

As I made my way through today’s Bible readings, nothing jumped out and inspired me. Until I reached this final little verse from Proverbs.

Wow!

This verse hit me right between the eyes and convicted me about the way I’ve been feeling over the past few days.

I’ve been restless, looking backward instead of forward, feeling regret, impatient, and yes, resentful. And if I’m being very honest, jealous of people who seem to have achieved so easily, the dream I want so badly.

When I’m working on a big project, like the novel I’m currently writing, I need hours of uninterrupted quiet time at my computer to concentrate on the story. When that time gets interrupted and things don’t go exactly as I’d planned, I get discouraged and impatient.

When I see someone who makes success look easy, while I struggle with failure, jealousy can blind me to seeing anything other than my own shortcomings.

Jealousy and resentment are like weights that sit on your chest, a constant reminder that you are not happy. Instead of keeping our focus on our dream, or better yet, on God’s Will for our lives, we are consumed with watching someone else.

When my thoughts are consumed with thoughts of jealousy or resentment, not only do I lose time away from pursuing my dream, I resent the person or thing that pulled me away.

Which really means that instead of leaving my desk with a smile and a positive attitude, I leave it with a scowl and my negative energy ruins whatever task I have to attend to.

What an incredible waste of our time and emotions. We know in our heart that jealousy and resentment hurts us, holds us back, and are not pleasing to God. So why do we hold onto them?

This past summer I was training for a 10K run to celebrate my birthday. I was also about 50 lbs. overweight. As I ran, I said to myself, ‘Imagine how much easier this would be if I wasn’t carrying this extra weight.’

In today’s verse from Proverbs, God is telling me the same thing. Imagine how much lighter my outlook and attitude would be if I weren’t carrying around so much resentment.

When we feel resentment about our present circumstances, we stop ourselves from moving forward. We start feeling resentment towards others… and you know where that leads. Jealousy and resentment are roommates.

When we allow resentment to grow in our hearts, we can feel jealousy towards others who we believe ‘have it easier’ than we do. Instead of focusing on and working toward our dream, we become obsessed with someone else’s progress.

Imagine how much easier it would be to get through our daily tasks and work on the projects that really matter to us if we weren’t carrying around that extra load!

How do we lay down the burden of jealousy and resentment?

First, give it to God in prayer. Tell Him honestly what you are feeling, even if it’s ugly. Then, ask for forgiveness.

Ask for His help with whatever it is that is the focus of your jealousy or resentment. Ask God to help you accept that we are each on our own path.

When I compare my progress toward my dream to someone else, I am diminishing God’s plan for my life. I am not fully trusting that God is working everything out for my best life, as long as I am obedient to His Will.

Then, make a list of 5 things that you are grateful for, and focus on them.

Replace your attitude of resentment with an attitude of gratitude.

Rinse (ask for forgiveness) and repeat (create your daily list of gratitude until it becomes second nature).

Where does resentment show up in your life?

Day 52 Reflections:

How do we lay down the burden of resentment?

First, give it to God in prayer.

Ask for His help with whatever it is that is the focus of your resentment or jealousy.

Second, make a list of five things that you are grateful for, and focus on them.

DAY 53

But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, they prosper in all they do.

~Psalm 1:2-3

BEARING FRUIT IN EACH SEASON

One of the greatest rewards of reading the Bible every day is that it draws us into a closer relationship with God and helps us to understand His will for our lives.

When we grow in our relationship with God, we also grow to trust Him and his ways, even when nothing seems to make sense. Especially in those moments when we experience setbacks or failures or just a maddening period of waiting for the results of our hard work.

In these periods, it’s essential to turn our hearts and minds to God and surrender our trust issues to Him.

Day 53 Reflections:

If, like me, you are having a difficult time completely surrendering your trust to God, join me in confessing this lack of trust to God and asking Him to strengthen our hearts.

Dear God,

Please forgive my lack of trust in You and the promises You’ve clearly provided for us in Your Word. Open my eyes and my heart to the wisdom and assurance that you promise throughout the Bible. Help me to grow closer to you every time I read Your Holy Word.

Lord, I love You. Yet my insecurities often keep me from completely surrendering and believing that You will help me, even though Your Word promises You will.

God, I am ashamed to admit this weakness to You. I ask for Your forgiveness, and I pray that You will work in my heart today to strengthen my faith.

I love You, God.

Amen.

DAY 54

I can’t even see the sun this morning.

The coastland fog has blotted out heaven’s light, and the early hours are cold and damp.

But God is here—in me and around me, and I will rejoice in Him.

~Psalm 97:1

I CAN’T EVEN SEE THE SUN THIS MORNING

My mother has been in and out of doctor’s offices for the last two weeks. It’s scary when someone we love so much is not feeling well and it seems as if there is so little we can do to help.

As I sat down to do my devotions this morning, my heart and head were filled with fearful thoughts and anxiety. How was I going to deal with another problem on my already full plate?

Today’s verses are what I found waiting for me.

Then I received a gentle reminder that earlier this week God found a way to provide, unexpectedly turning a mistake into the perfectly timed solution.

Often, this is the way God works in our lives. He has a knack for turning a bad situation to our good or sending help at just the right moment, not a moment sooner. I may never know when an answer to prayer is going to arrive, but I know that God will never fail me.

This morning I prayed that I would grow in my trust of His ways enough to not be fearful every time something worrying happens but instead face it with faith and courage.

Day 54 Reflections:

Dear God,

Please remove fear from our hearts and replace it with Your assurance that You are in control, and that You never fail us.

I love You.

Amen

Your turn…

DAY 55

So I died to the law, so that I might live for Christ.

My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

~Galatians, 2:19-20

GIVING UP

No, I’m not suggesting you give up your dream. I’m suggesting you give your dream UP to God.

I truly believe that when we open our hearts and our hands and are willing to surrender our deepest dreams to God, He will honor our trust, by making the outcome of those dreams greater than anything we could have achieved on our own or even imagined.

Releasing our dreams into God’s care takes courage and trust. But if we truly believe that God loves us and wants the best for us, then we can rest in the knowledge that our dreams are safe with God. In fact, they are in the best place possible.

Day 55 Reflections:

Today, let’s make it a habit to appreciate God’s role in our lives first, give Him the glory, and hand Him our businesses, our dreams, and all other aspects of our lives, and then go forward from there.

Are you willing to give up control, surrender your dream to God and trust that He knows what is best for you?

DAY 56

I know all the things you do. I have seen

your love, your faith, your service,

and your patient endurance.

And I can see your constant improvement in all these things.

~Revelation 2:19

I am counting on the Lord;

yes, I am counting on Him.

I have put my hope in His word.

~Psalm 130:5

GOING THE DISTANCE WITH GOD

Today’s verses are a call and response.

In the first verse we have God’s assurance that He hears our prayers, knows our heart’s desires, and sees our attempts to live better lives.

I especially like the last line: “And I can see your constant improvement in all these things.” Doesn’t that sound like the conversational tone you’d love to have with God?

Yes! God is on our side! He’s not the judgmental old man with a white beard sitting on a remote throne. He’s our Father, our Counselor, and our Abba. As we can see from this verse, instead of condemning our mistakes, God wants to encourage our growth.

The second verse is our response.

We believe in God’s faithfulness, and we respond with our faithfulness to Him.

We can trust Him with our hopes and dreams because of the promises He has spoken to us, through His Word.

These verses reflect the relationship that God calls us toward. He wants us to know that He sees us. He is an active observer of each of our lives. He appreciates our efforts and understands our needs.

God longs for us to bring Him into our lives more actively.

Day 56 Reflections:

This morning, I found these three verses mentioned in a post on Pastor Rick Warren’s Facebook page. They meant so much to me, that I wanted to share them with you.

Look up: 1 John 4:18—what is God telling you about the fears that are keeping you from your dreams?

Now look up: James 2:17—What does God want you to do in the face of your fears?

Finally, read Proverbs 24:16—Fear of failure is a huge stumbling block and the biggest reason why we quit too soon. How does God want you to treat failure?

DAY 57

I know all the things you do, and

I have opened a door for you that no

one can close.

You have little strength,

yet you obeyed My word and did not

deny Me.

~Revelation 3:8

YOUR LITTLE STRENGTH IS MORE THAN ENOUGH

Today’s verse is God’s Word of encouragement for our heart’s desire, our goals, and our special projects that we are working on.

Many of these projects may take months or even years to come to fruition, but we can remain confident that when God has opened a door for us, nothing will be able to close it.

Often we hear that when God closes one door, He opens another. But we get stuck staring at the closed door, certain that it was the one we were destined to walk through. Which is what keeps us from seeing God’s open door. We blind ourselves to God’s greater vision for our lives.

The key to success is aligning our plans with God’s plan for our lives. The best way to do that is by strengthening our relationship with God, through reading the Bible, and by presenting our plans to God through prayer and watching and listening for His direction as we take action. This is what I mean by waiting with God when we are waiting for an answer to prayer.

When we follow God’s guidance for our lives, we can rest assured that He will be right there by our side, no matter how long the journey takes us. Waiting with God becomes an opportunity to grow with God, so that when the answer to our prayer arrives, we find that we are in a better place due to our spiritual maturation.

This verse shows that, even when we have little strength, when we meet with discouragement or setback, we can still find encouragement to keep going, because God has opened a door for us that nothing will be able to close.

Day 57 Reflections:

I’d like to encourage you to write out today’s verse in the form of a prayer to God. Confirm to God that you are standing on this promise for your dream, that whatever door He has opened for you, will not be closed.

DAY 58

A Gentile woman who lived there came to Him pleading, “Have mercy on me, Oh Lord, Son of David!”

But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word. Then His disciples urged Him to send her away. “Tell her to go away,” they said. “She is bothering us with all her begging.”

Then Jesus said to the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep, the people of Israel.”

But she came and worshiped him, pleading again, “Lord, help me!”

Jesus responded, “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.”

She replied, “That’s true, Lord, but even dogs are allowed to eat the scraps that fall beneath their master’s table.”

“Dear woman,” Jesus said to her, “your faith is great. Your request is granted.” And her daughter was instantly healed.

~Matthew 15:22-28

REACHING OUT FOR THE HEM OF THE MASTER

This is one of my all-time favorite passages from the Bible. I so identify with this woman. The shame she must have felt as she approached Jesus, after everyone else had shunned her. And then her courage when it appeared, at first, that Jesus was also going to turn her away.

But wait!

Jesus was teaching us a lesson on the value of persistence in our faith.

The greatest challenge in the pursuit of our dream is to hold on, to keep asking, to keep praying, to keep working, when nothing seems to be happening, or when nothing seems to be going right.

It’s easy to give up. It’s easy to say, “Well, God didn’t answer my prayer.” Or “This wasn’t meant to be, so I’m going to stop trying. Stop asking.”

Believe me, I’ve been there. In fact, in some respects, I’m there right now. But I also believe that I am growing in my faith as a result of my persistence.

When my heart is breaking from unanswered prayers, I want to be the woman in this passage. I want to have that unshakable faith, to know that God will answer my prayers, and the courage to keep asking, to keep tugging on the hem of His robe, until He does.

Day 58 Reflections:

I believe that Jesus is encouraging us to hang in there. Keep praying. Keeping asking. Persistently. Keep working on that dream.

I believe, that in God’s perfect time, we too will hear: “Your faith is great. Your request is granted.”

DAY 59

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

~1 Samuel 16:7

GOD LOOKS

AT THE HEART

God knows you better than anyone will ever know you.

I’ll wager that God knows you better than you know yourself, after all, He created you!

This means that in those moments when we aren’t feeling pretty, we’ve gained weight, a few grey hairs have appeared out of nowhere, or the teenage acne we thought we’d left behind years ago returns, we need to be reminded that God sees us differently than the world sees us.

God sees our heart. God loves us, just as we are.

Yes, He wants us to live healthy lives, to make positive choices, so that our mind and body reflect His creation. But I believe God also wants us to know that as we grow older, we are no less precious or lovely to Him. He sees our heart.

Amen.

Day 59 Reflections:

I want to challenge you to begin writing out Bible verses that inspire or remind you that God looks at your heart and that God’s love for you is never-ending. The reason for writing them out, rather than just highlighting them in your Bible, is that the act of writing will help to make them more personal to you and easier to remember.

DAY 60

You’re blessed when you stay the course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God. You’re blessed when you follow his directions, doing your best to find him. That’s right you don’t go off on your own; you walk straight along the road he set.

~Psalm 119:1-2

STAY THE COURSE

As I mentioned earlier, one of my favorite books is Debbie Macomber’s Knit Together, in particular, the opening chapters where she describes the five long years it took her to become a published author and how many obstacles she had to overcome to realize her dream.

What struck me about her journey and those of other, now famous, writers is that the darkest hour came immediately before their big breakthrough. It’s as if they had to face that final, most-daunting trial, before they were able to reach their own promised land.

I think that darkest hour, when we don’t have the assurance that everything is going to turn out okay, is when most people finally give up or put their dream back on the shelf. And many times, it’s perfectly understandable. Rent has to be paid, other members in the family require our time and attention, and we just have to go out and get a job, or a second one. Which leaves little time to pursue our dream.

I believe that in today’s verses, God is asking us to stay the course. If He has put a dream in our heart, He has promised to see it through until the end. But we have to do our part.

Rather than put our dream away when the going gets tough, what if we dug our heels in and declared that we would find a way?

Do you love your dream enough to get up an hour earlier, or stay up an hour later to work on it? Will you sacrifice a Saturday afternoon to spend time working on your dream instead of making a shopping date with your best friend?

God has promised to honor your dream. Are you willing to stay the course and not give up?

Day 60 Reflections:

How often do you rehash the past and worry about the present and future, spending more time worrying than taking action that would resolve the problem?

DAY 61

Now all glory to God who is able, through His might power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

~Ephesians 3:20

May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands.

~Psalm 90:17

GOD’S EXPLOSIVE LOVE

At the beginning of this devotional I described a picture of a bird’s nest, which I was considering as a possible illustration for the book cover.

Instead, I chose the very vibrant ‘flower bomb’ that you see now. I chose it because It perfectly captured the explosive energy our dreams can have in our life. They have the power to turn everything upside down and move us from a life of predictability to not knowing what knew thing will happen today.

The outpouring of Holy Spirit, God moving in our life, can also feel like that flower bomb.

When we are working on our dream, we can go weeks or months or even years with nothing to show for our efforts. And then, in God’s perfect timing, we will see an explosion of God’s goodness, His powerful moving in our lives.

Through the drought and the flood, our job is to remain faithful, keep praising God, thanking Him for every good thing in our lives, and loving the journey, remembering that as we work toward our dream, the real purpose of all we do is to draw closer to God.

Our Heavenly Father knows our dreams because He is the One who put them in our hearts when He created us! Trust God with your dream.

God loves you beyond measure and calls you to a relationship with Him. Pursue that closer walk with God and watch what happens. I believe you will be amazed.

Amen.

Day 61 Reflections:

Today is our last day together… in this book. (Of course, I hope we’ll meet again in my next book!) I hope you will spend today’s time of reflection looking back through the pages of your journal at how far you’ve come during the past sixty days. How has God spoken to you? What have you learned about yourself, about your dream, that you did not know before? How can you use that knowledge to take your dream to the next level?

Most important, how can you use what you’ve learned to draw closer to God?

Although today is the last day of this devotional, I hope you will use this as a springboard to immediately jump into another devotional, so that you don’t lose the habit of spending daily time with God.

I love you and thank you for our time together.

I pray that God will continue to bless you and give you the desires of your heart and your dreams new energy.

Amen.

If you enjoyed God Loves Your Dream, please take a moment to leave a review on Amazon.com, Goodreads.com, or one of your favorite indie book sites. Sharing your enjoyment of a book helps to spread the word and is more important to an indie-author than anything else!

Keep reading for bonus first chapters from my novels God Loves You.—Chester Blue, and Mrs. Tuesday’s Departure.

GOD LOVES YOU.

—CHESTER BLUE

By Suzanne Elizabeth Anderson

“My Goodness, there are so many stars out tonight,” Miss Millie whispered. She stood on her back porch, hands on her hips, head tilted back, and stared at the glittering night sky.

Finally, she found her favorite constellation, the Big Dipper. “How lucky we are to have such wondrous stars to enjoy.”

Each night she came outside to admire the moon and the blanket of twinkling stars that covered the sky from one end to the other. She’d been doing this for most of her seventy-five years on Earth.

Some nights, the stars formed the shapes of animals romping through the sky, like the Big Dipper, which formed part of the Ursa Major, called that because ‘ursa’ meant ‘bear’ and it looked like a big bear in the sky. Which is exactly why it was her favorite. Miss Millie had a very special place in her heart for bears.

For Miss Millie, each night held a new adventure as she watched the stars move across the sky with the changing seasons. And each night she made a wish on the first star she saw. Most nights, Miss Millie’s heart was filled with joy at the beauty of the night sky. But tonight was so very different. It was the end of a long day that had brought terrible news. Instead of smiling as she looked at the panorama overhead, she pursed her lips to keep from crying and her eyes filled with tears and blurred the stars she loved so dearly.

Tonight she had a special wish. She walked down the steps of the porch and out to the backyard. The grass was wet and cool beneath her bare feet. Miss Millie looked up at the sky and thought about the right way to phrase her wish. She needed to think carefully, because this wasn’t an ordinary wish. It was going to be a prayer. And prayers were more powerful than wishes.

Lately she’d been bothered that the world had forgotten the magic of wishes and dreams. Nowadays, it seemed that people looked down instead of up. They went to work, they came home, and then they went to sleep. It seemed that most people moved through their lives as if they were sleepwalking.

Miss Millie understood how this could easily happen. Some people gave up on their wishes and dreams because they’d been disappointed too many times in life and just didn’t have the courage to keep hoping things would change.

That’s what had happened in the little Midwestern town where Miss Millie had lived her whole life. It had been a gradual thing, but like rust, some gradual things can be deadly. When she was a little girl, her hometown of Blossom, Ohio, was a vibrant place, full of young families. No matter how many books about faraway places young Millie read, she couldn’t imagine living anywhere else.

Which is why, when Miss Millie grew up, she opened a shop on Main Street. Main Street was always filled with beautiful shops and shoppers so it was the perfect place to open a store.

In her shop, Miss Millie sold and repaired all sorts of teddy bears. With all those young families, Miss Millie’s shop was always busy. Young children came with their parents to choose their first bear. Adults came to have their cherished childhood bears fixed after they’d been loved through many years and needed a stitch to repair a tear, or new eyes or ears. Her shop even attracted teddy bear collectors, who knew that Miss Millie had a secret supply of very old, very special bears that she could sometimes be convinced to sell to a special home.

As the years, and then decades flew by, Miss Millie became known as the best teddy bear historian and repairwoman in the Midwest. Some people said she was even the best in the entire United States.

But then the children of the young families became adults and went off to college. And never returned home to Blossom to start their own families. At first no one noticed that the shops on Main Street were quieter than usual, or that the Main Street Diner never filled up after the morning rush of farmers who stopped by for breakfast at five a.m.

Even Miss Millie didn’t notice at first. She still received a lot of business through the mail, for bears that needed to be repaired, or requests for a search for a rare bear that a collector was hoping to find. But then one day Miss Mille looked up from her table at the back of the shop where she usually spent her day working, and noticed that she was alone.

The next day it was the same. And the day after that. So she went to see her friend, Lulu, the waitress at the Main Street Diner and asked her if she’d also noticed fewer people on Main Street.

“Fewer people, on Main Street?” Lulu threw back her head and laughed. She laughed so hard, she had to put down the pot of coffee she’d holding to pour Miss Millie’s second cup. “Honey, it’s not just Main Street, this whole town is as quiet as a church on Monday. So many people have moved away, I believe we’re the town that’s been forgotten.”

Miss Millie looked down at her cup of coffee and frowned. This was terrible news. Blossom was a wonderful town. Yes, it was a small town and perhaps not as exciting as a big city. But there were so many good things about it. Why had people given up and moved away?

That was a month ago. Since that conversation with Lulu, things had gotten worse. Once Miss Millie had started to pay attention, she realized that at times a whole week would go by without a single person coming into her shop. And on her walk home at the end of the day, she began to notice that more and more of the stores that shared Main Street were closing or were already empty.

And then today, Miss Millie had received the worst news of all. Mr. Jones, the man who owned the building, which housed her teddy bear shop, had lost the building to the bank. The bank was going to sell the building at auction, which meant that Miss Millie could no longer have a teddy bear shop in his building. She would have to move.

This was of course terrible news. Not only would Miss Millie lose her shop, she would lose her business. Yes, yes, perhaps she could open a new shop in one of the many other empty stores on Main Street. But this was the proof that it wouldn’t matter where she moved, there were simply not enough people in Blossom to shop in her teddy bear store.

Which is why tonight she stood staring up at the stars with a special purpose in her heart. Miss Millie believed in dreams and wishes. And tonight she was going to pray for some way to share her belief with others.

“Dear God,” Miss Millie began as she looked up at the stars, “how many people never see how beautiful the sky is at night because they simply don’t take the time to look up?”

She smiled as a shooting star flew through the dark sky. “Maybe it’s because we seem to be going through a tough time right now. I suppose when times are tough people don’t have time for teddy bears or small towns like Blossom. I know that You are the Creator of all things. And I know, when things look the worst is when something new and wonderful is about to happen, if we can just hold on. Now that my teddy bear shop is closed I don’t know what I’m going to do. I don’t know what’s going to happen to my hometown, but You do.” Miss Millie said. “Dear God, I’m holding on, but I could sure use a bit of help from You. Give me a way to share the gift of believing in dreams with others, too.”

Miss Millie stretched out her arms and embraced all the beauty she saw in the sky above her head. She silently thanked God for creating such a beautiful universe where anything was possible even when it seemed impossible.

She smiled as she saw another star shooting across the sky. “Thank you, God.” And she turned and went back in the house to go to bed.

The next morning, Miss Millie woke up early. She climbed from her bed and stretched her arms over her head and then twisted from side to side to get her creaky old bones and muscles warmed up to start the day.

As she turned, she glanced out of her bedroom window, and saw that it was a glorious, sunny, summer morning.

She threw on her robe and hurried downstairs; she needed to make her breakfast and get to the shop. On such a beautiful morning there were certain to be lots of people on Main Street and that meant there might be some new customers for her shop!

Then she stopped on the bottom step and touched her fingertips to her lips as she remembered that her shop was closing. There wouldn’t be lots of people on Main Street. So many of the stores were empty, no one came to Main Street anymore. If they needed anything, they went to the big mall, in the big town, down the hill.

Suddenly she felt very sad about closing her store and facing the future alone. What would she do? Miss Millie blinked back the tears. No, she thought, I won’t cry, I know that when things are at their worst, something better is just around the corner if we just put one foot in front of the other and keep moving forward. She grasped the banister railing tightly and straightened her back with her new resolve. Her heart still hurt, and she was more than a little bit afraid of not knowing what to do next, but she would take her own advice.

Well then, this morning would be the perfect time to work in her garden! She needed to weed the flowerbed and then she would tie up the beans in the vegetable garden. If she was lucky, the cabbage and zucchini would be ready to harvest and she would be able to make soup for tonight’s dinner.

Later, she would go to her shop on Main Street and begin packing her teddy bears. She would make a list of all the people she knew who might want to buy one of the remaining bears, then she’d pick a few that she could donate to the children’s hospital, and finally, she would bring the rest home. They would sit on the shelves of her office until she figured out what to do next.

First though, she would pick up the newspaper from the front porch, make coffee, have a bite to eat, put on her overalls and her green rubber clogs, and then she’d be ready to work in the garden. She’d finished making her mental list of things to do, just as she opened the front door to pick up her morning newspaper.

Right next to her newspaper, she found a box wrapped in plain brown paper and tied with twine. Miss Millie’s name and address was printed in big red letters in the lower right corner. As she looked closer, she noticed there was no return address to be found anywhere. Who had sent the box?

Miss Millie picked up the box and her newspaper and brought them both into the kitchen where she placed them on the table while she made a pot of coffee and a piece of toast for her breakfast. She carefully cut the piece of toast in half. On one half she spread a spoonful of peanut butter and on the other half she spread a spoonful of chocolate hazelnut spread. This was her favorite breakfast for sunny days. She sat down at the table with her cup of coffee and her plate of toast and carefully considered the box as she ate her breakfast.

She hadn’t ordered anything, so that couldn’t be it.

She chewed her toast and thought very carefully.

It wasn’t her birthday.

She took a sip of coffee, and thought more deeply.

It was the end of August. Schools had just started, perhaps it was a box of notebooks and pencils that were meant for a young student who lived nearby?

Miss Millie checked the address again. No, it was her name and address clearly printed on the front of the box.

Christmas was still four months away.

Perhaps, it was time to stop staring at the box and take action.

Miss Millie moved her cup and plate to the side of the table and placed the box in front of her. Very carefully, she cut the twine and unwrapped the brown paper that covered the box. Beneath the plain brown paper was a cardboard box with a lid. It was a plain orange box with no writing anywhere that might give a hint as to what was inside. So Miss Millie lifted the lid of the box.

And was very surprised by what she saw.

MRS. TUESDAY’S DEPARTURE

By Suzanne Elizabeth Anderson

“I can’t sleep Nana.”

Mila’s skin was clear and pale; like the antique German porcelain dolls I’d bought for her when she was a child. Long dark lashes shaded her almond shaped blue eyes.

I released the doorknob that I’d been ready to close, entered her room and settled into an overstuffed chair with a sigh and a smile that belied my worry. Candlelight silhouetted Mila’s face in a halo of pale yellow. The book she held created a shadow that fell across her chest making the pink roses on her nightgown glow and float in the shadows of her long dark hair. In the five years that Mila had lived here, there were few nights when I did not find her with a book.

When Mila first arrived, I placed this chair next to her bed to read aloud one of the children’s books that provided me with my living and my reputation. Over the years, the chair remained, I wrote more books, and read each one to Mila until she outgrew them and began to read the novels she found in my study. The ritual of our time together before bed, our discussion of books, remained. Even during these years of war.

She propped the book against her chest and watched me expectantly. “You’re coming with us aren’t you?”

“Of course.” I turned from her gaze and smoothed the edge of the comforter wishing our conversation could skim the surface as lightly as my fingers.

“And Aunt Anna?” Mila’s eyes searched my face for signs of deception.

“Yes, she seems to understand.”

“But she forgets things so quickly,” Mila added anxiously. “You know what she’s like when she becomes confused.”

“We’ll sort it out in the morning,” I folded my hands in my lap and leaned back in the chair. “She’ll come with me.”

“Mom’s worried she’ll slow us down.”

“She said that to you?” my voice tightened as I finally looked into her eyes.

Mila looked away. “I overheard Mom and Bela in the kitchen before supper.”

“I’ll make sure that Anna reaches the station on time.”

With that we sat among the shadows of the bedroom, neither of us willing to enter the overrun province. My younger sister and her husband resented my care taking of my twin sister. A year ago, Anna had moved in with us. A nervous breakdown made it impossible for her to continue living alone in her apartment near the university where she had been a poet in residence.

Mila began again. “When I try to talk to Momma she snaps at me.”

“She’s just concerned about the arrangements for our trip,” I offered.

“Sometimes she looks over at Bela before answering me.”

“Bela’s a difficult man.”

“I think she’s afraid he might leave without her. Would he do that, Nana?”

“No. He wouldn’t leave without her.”

I rubbed my hands down the length of my wool skirt to warm them. This room resisted warmth despite the clanking radiators that sat like plump cats hissing and spitting against two of the bedroom walls.

I disdained my younger sister’s choice in men. Ilona effortlessly used hypochondria as a defence against any form of housework or childrearing labors. She’d picked her husbands accordingly. Men willing to care for her in exchange for total control of her movements and her affections. Jealous masters.

As a result of Ilona’s disposition, and the low wages Bela received as a legal clerk, they’d come to live with me after my husband died. They insisted they were concerned about my living alone. Though I surmised my spacious apartment was a greater priority to them than my welfare.

My husband and I lived in a large three-bedroom apartment in the center of Pest. I kept the master bedroom that I’d shared with my husband, which still held his clothes, and his scent. There were two smaller bedrooms. Mila slept in one, my sister Anna in the other. Ilona and Bela felt those bedrooms were too small for them, and when they realized that I was not going to relinquish the room I’d shared with my husband, they claimed the living room as the only room large enough to accommodate them comfortably.

As a result, my study became both a library and a living room. The dining room and kitchen remained, as they were when my husband and I lived alone here. I maintained the truce with Ilona and endured the angry outbursts of her husband to keep Mila near. She was the daughter I’d always wanted. She was an inquisitive and beautiful young girl.

“What are you reading?” I leaned forward and gestured toward her book, hoping an old routine would bring comfort and distract us from our separate worries.

“Aunt Anna’s poems,” Mila said, turning the cover toward me. “I can’t believe that she wrote the words.”

“Before her illness, Anna was a brilliant poet with an enormous gift for making the mundane sublime. She was a remarkable woman. She still is.”

“I wish I could talk to her about the poems,” Mila said.

“Try,” I said. “There are moments when she still understands a great deal.”

Mila pushed herself up in the bed and leaned toward me. “What does she remember?”

“For her, the poems that were written a decade ago are the freshest in her mind. That’s some of her best work. She can still tell you exactly what she was trying to achieve in each line. Ironically, it’s her inability to process what she did yesterday, or a moment ago, that keeps her from creating. It’s sad. I know she has so much more to say.”

Mila leaned back against the pillows and chewed her lip. “Does she realize what’s happening to her?”

I took Mila’s hand in mine and gently squeezed it. “She knows.”

A year ago, Anna had handed me a stack of leather-bound books. The journals contained Anna’s notes on poems that she had struggled through, political skirmishes at the university, and embarrassingly detailed notes on her love life. Anna asked me to edit them and publish them for her. It was one of the first things she asked for when the doctor concluded that her delusional bouts would become more frequent over time. She wanted some testimony to survive as her real self slipped away. I’d begun working on them when my own writing stalled. I was piqued, discomfited, and touched by what I read. In the long sloping lines of confession that covered the pages of her journals, I realized a depth to her I’d never imagined.

“How long will she recognize us, Nana?”

“I hope forever.”

Some things a young girl should not have to learn too quickly. The irony of life, that insanity should take the one thing that allowed Anna to express her greatest gift. I shook my head. No, that was the least of it. There was so much more I was trying to protect Mila from. Outside her windows, four floors above the street, the March wind moaned. The windows rattled and whistled softly as cold air seeped through cracks in the warped wooden frames. The streets were unusually quiet. Even at this hour, Budapest should have been alive with the sounds of the city. But there were no cars on the street or pedestrians making their way home from the opera house or the cafe. What a sharp contrast to the celebrations held just days before.