The group was silent as the question hung in the air: “What are the dreams that lie deep within your heart?”

Slowly the answers came out:

“I’ve forgotten how to dream.” “Disappointment in life has kept me from dreaming.” “Just paying the bills and getting through has put all my dreams on the back burner.” “Helping others reach for their dreams left my own right out of reach.”

Dreams can get lost. From time to time, most of us need a refresher course on building a dream. The dust of day-to-day living can bury them. New dreams are often birthed in the midst of trial. Asking God for wisdom and a way through the trial is sometimes the very seed to a new dream.

Dreams take time to build. When building a dream you must be prepared to persevere. Building a dream is not for the faint-hearted! It takes faith, faith in yourself and faith in God who plants the seeds of dreams in our hearts.

Most of us have a dream buried beneath the rubble of life. Take it out and dust it off. If you have no dreams left, ask God to put a new dream in your heart.

Share your dream with one person who will walk beside you and encourage you in building a dream. We all have days when the daily dust piles up again and it’s easy to let the dream slip away. A soulmate will paint the colors of your dream for you when you have forgotten the picture.

Right now, today, put a name to your dream. Write it down. Dreams that come from the very seed God places in your heart will be dreams that go beyond the acquiring of bigger, better, more. His dreams, the ones that will fulfill who you are in the depth of your being, will be dreams that make you a better person and the world a better place.

Building a dream can start today

Define your dream

If it’s more education, be specific about a particular course. If it's starting your own business, pinpoint exactly what you would do. If it’s helping the needy, then decide what need and in what location. Identify where you’re going.

Resource yourself

In other words, do your homework. Find out what it takes to make your dream happen. Where is your course offered? How much does it cost? Is there a market niche for the business you want to start? Can you practically get to the need you wish to help meet? Evaluate the risk. The greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing!

Equip yourself

Start a savings account for your dream and put in pennies if that’s all you have today. Register for one course. Write up a business plan. Volunteer in the area of the need you have identified. Many dreams go by the wayside because no one ever took that first step. Make a choice today.

Apply yourself

Dreams take hard work and often sacrifice. You will have to say “no” to some things in order to pursue your dream. Persevere.

Manage yourself

Know your priorities and stick to them. Many things will call you away from your dream. Don’t let regret of yesterday or fear of tomorrow rob you of pursuing your dream today!

The God who created us put our deepest desires within our hearts. He calls us to persevere. He calls us to ask for wisdom from him and to walk in faith. He reminds us that when we are double-minded, we are unstable in every way.

"Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do." James 1:4-8

Invite God to Re-kindle His Dream in Your Heart Today

Even in the midst of any trial or difficulty you are facing, ask him for wisdom. He promises to give it! Invite his Holy Spirit to give you the insight and knowledge you need to move forward, and be single-minded in trusting him. God made you just as you are. His Spirit will work in you and through you as you ask him to help you fulfill the dreams he has planted in your heart.