Dream Chaser

A tale of a tantrum thrown, and a new perceptive found...

"I want it, and I want it now!" The voice was demanding and filled the room. "I know you really want it, but now is not the time. You're going to have to wait until we can afford it," he responded ever so gently. Not liking that answer, eyes narrowed and a loud sigh was released into the air. "I just don't understand. This is THE one, I have to have it!" Eyes were now gazed upon him, hoping for a more positive reaction. "Until we are out of debt, we can't afford it." With a stomp of the right foot, a tear flooded the eye. Taking notice, he then continued, “I’m not saying you can never buy it, just not right now.” Another sigh was released into the air. With a pouty face now in place, all hope was lost. Patience and determination would have to become friends to make this work.

Right now you may be thinking, “Okay, what was it their kid wanted and couldn’t get?” Wrong! The “kid” throwing the tantrum was me! What would cause a grown adult to do such a thing? No, not jewelry or clothing, nor a new furniture set. I found my dream home, and it was begging me to be its new owner. I had come across a “farmette” nestled out in the middle of no where. It was picture perfect; 2700 sq. foot home with a private pond, garden, and gazebo, all fenced in on 8 acres…in the peaceful country nonetheless. Yes, yes, yes! It was exactly what I had been dreaming of! There were only three things keeping me back; location, money, and my husband. Okay, so he would have to commute 1.5 hours to work, each way, each day. Yeah, so what we can’t sell our house right now because of the market and existing debt has to be paid off first. The point was, I wanted it.

Reality check. We don’t always get what we want. Every move we make has to be in God’s will and in His timing, not ours. Quite often patience has to be put into place. In this particular case, determination was set on fire. I got a glimpse of our dream home and I knew deep down we couldn’t afford it. So, instead of having my dreams feel defeated, I put on my game face and buckled down. God never said we couldn’t have our dreams, but sometimes He does say, “wait”. It amazes me how sometimes my own desires try to over rule God’s perfect plan. I can honesty say that in the situations where my desires won, I ended up failing. To be on board with His plan, you have to be in tune with Him. I went to Him through prayer and felt Him say, “I want the best for you too Jenn, but you need to take care of XYZ before that dream can be possible. Just be patient. Patient.”

So, here I sit 3 months later, knowing full well what needs to happen to make that dream into a reality. I’ve been praying to stay disciplined and focused. We’ve been knocking debt out right and left! Sure, this particular dream house won’t be there for us when the time comes. But, I find myself referring to it often in my head. It’s what keeps me moving forward in my progress. I feel God is all about fulfilling dreams, as long as it doesn’t prevent you from being close to Him. It could be as simple as buying your dream home, a career change, or a big life change. Whatever your dreams are today, I challenge to pray, listen, and obey. Skipping one of those steps could result in failure or regret, so be patient and wait upon HIS timing.

"Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this." Psalm 37:4-5 (NIV)