a l i v e & a w a k e

I believe the human heart is the canvas on which God paints His dreams. As the pinnacle of His creation, God associates Himself with people in a way that is unparalled by any other creature - including angels. I think He actually enjoys "bending down" and whispering some of His best kept secrets into our ears.

In this day and age, God wants us to be a part of what He is doing, and has entrusted us with some of His most valuable plans. It says in the Bible that as Christians, He has written His law on our heart (Jeremiah 31:33), He has given us His mind (1 Corinthians 2:16), He has given His own Spirit to us to guide us into all truth (John 16:13) and that He desires that we understand secrets and mysteries hidden from others in the past (Ephesians 3:4-6). One of the promises given to the Church at Pentecost was that "young men would see visions and old men would dream dreams" (Acts 2:17).

What's on your heart?  What part of God's dreams or visions or ideas or secrets has He painted in your life? Have you taken the time to look- to really look? I find the more I spend time listening and talking to God, the more He reveals, and consequently the more I become excited at everything I see. I see myself becoming more like Jesus. I see my wife blossoming into the fantastic woman of God that she is. I see my boy growing up with both parents who love him and with a personal passion to love and serve God. I see my extended family succeeding in becoming the people they were meant to be. I see the students in my school transformed by the message of the Good News of God. I see my fellow Christians committing to a life of righteous, peaceful and joyful living. I see injustices righted. Poverty abolished. Crime eliminated. Illnesses and diseases cured. I see people finding the true meaning of life, and experiencing complete satisfaction. Overwhelming? Not at all, because more and more I am beginning to see the largeness and power of God.

I know it can be done. I know God is able to do anything. Where I sometimes fail is to see exactly where I  fit in. I know that in myself, and by my own effort, I am very unable. In the past I have tried to figure it all out and attempt to fulfill God's dream using my limited understanding. Usually it meant I ended up in the wrong place, doing the wrong things for the wrong reasons. Disaster!

So lately God has been reminding me that He "knows the plans He has for me...", and that I need to spend time with Him, listening. As my good friend Dave Roberts continuously reminds me, I need to have "my spiritual antennae up", constantly asking, "God is that you?". I am finding that He indeed does speak. He speaks volumes - a lot of which I shamedly admit I miss. But what does get through is becoming clearer and clearer. I am beginning to see myself in the picture. I am asking for the wisdom, discernment and ability to see these "inside" things become reality on the "outside".

So what's on your heart? What has God said to you? Where do you see yourself fitting into His picture? What kind of things dwell inside you? Get your spiritual antennae up. And might I suggest that when He speaks, you listen. Write it down. Surround yourself with people who will encourage and listen with you. You will find that in God's perfect time, He will show you how to make your dreams reality.

Jon