Know the dream killers around you

The first step towards achieving your goals in life is to have a dream. To dream is like stretching your imagination or visualizing the invisible. Albert Einstein says, “Imagination is everything; it is the preview of life’s coming attractions.” There is tremendous power in your dreams, imaginations and in your creativity. It is psychologically healthy to have a dream and if you do not have one, then you merely exist, not living.

Generally, children have tremendous capacity for imagination. If you ask them what they want to be when they grow up, it will amaze you the answers they will give. Why is it that when we become adults we lose that kind of vision? To live a life of faith and achieve your goals, you need to be aware of dream busters.

Those people or elements that tend to reduce or shrink your imagination and deflate your faith:

First is family. When you share your dream with parents or brothers and sisters they may criticise it instead of encouraging and giving a solution to achieve it.

Joseph was a big dreamer and when he told his brothers his dreams; they mocked and poked fun at him because he was younger than them. Jesus too experienced this from his family and neighbours.

When he came to Nazareth (his birth city) the reaction was less than favourable. They asked, “Where did this man get these things, is he not the carpenter’s son; Mary’s son; the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon; and are his sisters not here with us?” (Matthew 13:55).

Second are friends. The Bible tells a story of Jairus and his sick daughter. While Jesus was speaking, some men came from the house of Jairus and told him his daughter was dead and he should not bother Jesus anymore. Jairus ignored what they said because he believed in his dream of his daughter’s healing; which came to pass.

Choose your friends carefully; you do not soar with eagles if you are running with the chicken. “He who walks with the wise will be wise; but the companion of fools will be destroyed” (Proverbs 13:20).

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Third is fatigue. Sometimes you get too tired and worn out to be creative; you then lose interest and your visions starts to shrink. Elijah got fatigued after a contest with the prophets of Baal; he caved in, gave up on his vision and dreams, had a pity party and even wished to die.

“Elijah walked for a day to the wilderness and sat under a broom tree. And he prayed that he may die. He lay and fell asleep. An angel touched him and told him to arise and eat the cake and drink water” (1st Kings 19:4-5).

Fourth is failure. Joshua had led the children of Israel into the Promised Land. Every battle they engaged in they were wining. When fought in the battle at Ai however, they got defeated. Joshua was so distraught he came back to God crying. God spoke to him and encouraged him to stand up and take the situation like a man.

Fifth is fear. Moses sent out the men of Israel to go and spy Canaan before they went in to occupy the land God had promised them. Most of them came with a negative report that had evoked fear in them.

They claimed that the people that dwell in the land are strong; the cities are walled and very great and they saw the children of Anak the giant there. These men made a fatal mistake that kills more dreams than anything else - confusing the dream phase with the problem solving phase’.

You think of ideas and evaluate them at the same time. It will cause you to fear and magnify any problem. Franklin Roosevelt says, “The only thing to fear is fear itself.”

To build and realise your dream, pray for wisdom to know God’s plan for your life. Stretch your imagination by daring to dream big. Establish a goal and see yourself flourish in its achievement. Visualise the results by painting a clear and detailed picture of where you want to be and see it completed.