DREAM OR NIGHTMARE?

What picture breaks into your mind at the mention of the word dream? Does it bring dread at the thought of nightmares you remember as clearly as if they had really happened? Or perhaps you recall a dream that ended all too soon it was so beautiful. Do you think of your greatest wish in life, your dream home, dream car, etc.? You might also think of daydreams, fairy tales you have woven in your imagination that you know will never come true.

People need dreams to survive in the often harsh circumstances they live in. If there is nothing to hope for, there is nothing to live for. If you're as old as me, you might remember the line in the song Happy Talk from South Pacific: You've gotta have a dream, if you don't have a dream, then how ya gonna have a dream come true? Good advice! Do you have a dream?

Gage Canadian Thesaurus defines 'dream' as a verb: build castles in the air, conjure, daydream, fantasize. It can also mean think, visualize, imagine. 'Dream' as a noun has a number of interesting synonyms: ambition, aspiration, beauty, heart's desire, goal, hope, vision. This is the dream to which I allude.

What is your heart's desire? To what do you aspire? Are you working toward a worthy goal? More money, perhaps? A better job? Fame? Power? Happiness? Throughout the ages people have followed their dreams, some to a disastrous end, others to marvelous fulfillment. What makes the difference?

Often a person dreams of things far too lofty to be attainable in comparison to his willingness and ability to work towards it. Want to be a famous singer, but not willing to practise for hours every day? The result is predictable. No fame. Is your desire for wealth proportionate to your  consistency in putting a plan into action? If not, poverty or mediocrity may continue for the rest of your life.

The difference between winners and losers, those who realize their dreams and those who don't, usually has nothing to do with ability or circumstances. Losers say, "If only I had...", or "If only that hadn't happened", "If only my parents had...", "If everything wasn't always against me." On the other hand, winners say, "I can and I will", "No matter if this or that happened in my past. I will overcome those obstacles." Winners will use those roadblocks as stepping stones to the next level of achievement.

It's a matter of mind.

It's a matter of discipline.

It's a matter of persistence.

It's a matter of passion.

It's your choice. Will you live your dream?

WHAT DOESN'T GO IN CAN'T COME OUT

The ability to love and the need to be loved is inherent in every human being from birth. Like the baby bird waiting in the nest with its mouth wide open for the next morsel of food from its mother, so from the time we are babies our souls are wide open, waiting for that love to be poured in.

But what happens to that little bird if the mother doesn't return to the nest? Quite obviously it will die in the safety of its home in the tree. The safe place cannot help keep it alive. So with humans. If love is not poured in on a constant basis, the soul withers. Something dies within. It happens in that place called home where safety and protection is expected. When love is wanting, life is wanting. Where love is not experienced, love cannot be given. As an empty glass is not a supply for a thirsty person, an empty soul cannot give out what it does not have within.

Where children are dearly loved by parents, an inner confidence takes root, a sense of completeness, a feeling of worth develops. When we are loved, we are able to love in return. What comes in can also go out. To love others brings great joy. To be loved is to be blessed beyond measure.

Is there hope for the unloved? Absolutely. Just look again at the scripture for the day. There is not one person on whom the Lord does not pour His love. Whether we realize it or not, even if we are completely alone in this world, we are loved. But we have to open our hearts to this love if we want to benefit from it, if we desire to 'feel' loved. We must open our whole being to the Lord Jesus Christ and allow Him to have the ownership of our lives. As His love pours into us, we can, in turn, pour out that same love to others.

Let love, the agape love of God, flow like a river into your spirit and out again. You will find fulfillment and satisfaction in healthy living by allowing His love to wash over you, fill you and to envelop all with whom you come in contact.