Hi friend! I know, it’s been a long time since I last posted. As I’m sure is true for many of you, I’ve been super busy with school, extracurriculars, and more. To be honest, this semester has been a lot and it’s crazy that I’m already nearing the end of my first year at the University of Georgia. It was actually one year ago this month that I was able to tour and commit to UGA. It is such a testament to God’s goodness that my dream has come to fruition.
Today, I want to talk about dreams.
The hopes and desires that we sequester in our hearts. Earlier this semester, I went to a women’s conference about dreams. We learned that the dreams that are in our hearts are planted by God. The dreams that blossom into passions are gifts given when we walk in Him, and our hearts are positioned towards Him. We can and should pursue those God-given dreams.
God will continually plant seeds in your life and as I look back at my life, I see these events as God moments. I think back to how I used to play with my toy doctor set and kitchen as a child and how invested I’ve always been in cooking and health. And now, I’m pursuing both of those passions through a career in dietetics. It definitely wasn’t easy to get here though! I think a lot of us self-sabotage our dreams. We let our human tendencies for acquiring material things or status blind us from pursuing what’s in our hearts. Some of you may know that I was pre-med when I entered UGA and ended up switching early last semester. It just wasn’t for me. When I switched to dietetics I felt so much peace and optimism for my future. I have a passion for what I am pursuing while being pre-med had quite literally consumed me with fear. Attending UGA in the first place has been a dream come to pass. I prayed long and hard that God would make it clear that this is where He wanted me to be. And let me tell you, even though there have been some very difficult moments, this place has been a blessing in more ways than I could have ever imagined.
So, are you pursuing the world’s expectations or God’s? I think that’s the hard thing about college and just life in general. There’s this interesting dichotomy between desiring stability and honoring our dreams. It’s so hard to pick a major, or partner, or anything that will bring you long-term joy and still be practical. But the thing is, if you surrender everything to Him, you are suddenly free of worldly burdens and are open to God’s desire for you which I promise will be better than anything you could have meticulously planned for yourself. Who else but your Creator would know you, and what you need, and your potential, and the lives you will one day touch? Who else would love their broken Creation so much?
Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Psalms 37:4
We are so unworthy of God’s grace and yet, we are God’s dream. He created humanity in a labor of love to have a relationship with us. When we sinned in the garden, what if God gave up on that dream? What if He did not show humanity mercy? Instead God promised us His Son as our savior and redeemer because He alone is Holy and He alone is fully good. Jesus sacrificed His life and went to great lengths for us because through His death and resurrection, we would be His dream fulfilled. It is such a beautiful thing and it brings perspective because our dreams are gifts from God. If we don’t pursue that gift for the Kingdom, then what is it all for?
God can see the big picture. He knows the entire story because He wrote it. And when God plants that seed–that consuming desire to pursue something, will you answer? Or will you doubt and run away? God won’t push you before you’re ready but He will meet you where you are and equip you when you’re ready.
So go after that dream. Pursue it alongside God with determination and passion. Sometimes it’s just easier to cast our dreams aside because we don’t feel worthy of them. It’s sad, but true. Sometimes we minimize our potential and settle when we harness so much more within us. Friend, please don’t let go of that dream. That dream could change the world for all you know. So write down the desires of your heart, hold on to them, nurture that dream, and let it grow.
The Gardener He entered the garden, got down on His knees. He treated the soil, knitted their seeds, and kneaded them into the earth. Nurtured, tended, watered, fed-- He loved, He mended, and never let go. Soon enough those seedlings grew, and grew, and grew, and grew, and grew, and then the seedlings were grown. Overwhelmed with hope, the garden determined to fulfill its purpose. The garden sang praises, a harmonious tune For they recalled the seed, that was crafted–well loved. Once a dream, now reality. The heart of their Gardener reflected in them. Their dreams and His are one. So they inhaled, And then exhaled. And the garden grew towards the Son. - AnnaLisa Hutchinson
