Dreams…..
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what it was like being a child and dreaming that anything is possible. Having that feeling where nothing is beyond your reach. Then somewhere along the way we grow up and get it in our head that we need to have realistic goals that can be more easily achieved.
Why is that? The Bible talks about how God wants to give us the desires of our hearts. (May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. Psalm 20:4 NIV)….(Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 NIV)
It wasn’t until recently when I got the call from A Wish with Wings saying that Abbey’s doctor from Scottish Rite had referred her to them and they wanted to meet with her and decide what her wish would be, that I started to think back on those childhood days filled with imagination and endless possibilities. The days when we talked to God with such honesty telling him what was on our heart no matter how small while trusting him to grant us even the most impossible of request.
Much like Abbey was telling Rachael and Dominique exactly what she wanted to wish for with no coaxing or hesitation, but just pure excitement in knowing that they where going to make her dream come true. They might not be able to grant every aspect of it in just the way she wished, but in the end it becomes more than she could have ever asked for. In the same way God may not always be able to answer our prayers in just the way that we had hoped, but in the end he answers them in a way that is more than we could have ever thought possible. Using even the toughest situations in our lives to bring him glory if we simply share it with others.
In the way a child shares with everyone (even people they don’t know) what they are excited about, hope for and believe in so must we as adults start sharing with others and God these same things. How else will God ever be able to use what he has done in our lives to help others?
(When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” Mark 10:14, 15 NIV)
In June 2013 almost a year to the date of Abbey’s wish trip my husband Josh committed suicide and left a void that I’m not sure can ever be filled. Looking back now I realize that the timing of Abbey’s trip was God’s way of answering a desire I didn’t even know I would have yet. A trip that was suppose to serve as a memory for our family if we lost Abbey, became the ultimate memory of Josh filled with photos, videos, laughter and love. A trip that can be looked back on for years to come and that serves as a reminder that sometimes even when our dreams come true the way we want….God still has a greater plan with so much more in store.
Jeremiah 29:11
” 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.”
– Kelli Aardal Goin