Selah--random thought in the middle of book-reading

This is going to be a very random and hopefully short post that stems from something very simple but profound that the Lord is allowing me to rediscover over the last 24 hours.

I woke up this morning with a very clear word resonating in my heart and mind: "If today you hear His Voice, harden not your heart." This was ridiculously applicable to me as a human being, since we all have a tendancy to return to a hardened state (see "Israel, Old Testament). But for me personally, my heart has been very callous as of late, and it finally was starting to bother me. And I found that it all stemmed from one thing: My focus had turned almost exclusively to myself--made a U-turn from listening to God's dreams to worrying about my own provision, reputation, etc. And when we find ourselves in a pattern that is CLEARLY against God's word for our life (specifically, in this case, worry), the road to hard-heartedness is accelerated.

Anyway, what am I getting at? Well, I think I RE-discovered (since this comes up from time to time) one of the best antidotes for this tendency (which as long as we are human, will never go away). It is crucial as believers, and especially as leaders, to consistently and intentionally BE with and SHARE LIFE with the people around us.

I'll even take it one step step further and get more specific: In the midst of doing this, ask them what their dreams are. It may sound strange at first, but it has been proven to me over and over again that EVERYONE has dreams that GOD has put in their hearts (whether they know it's from Him or not). It is amazing to me how many people have these dreams that have been forced into dormancy or even KILLED (by society, their own decisions, family, even...most sadly...the "church").

Amy and I got to do this twice yesterday, and the response was simple yet profound. And as it melted some of the crud that had built up in my heart, it reawakened my OWN dream of the CHURCH (individual people, congregations, and the Body of Christ as a whole) being about the business of AWAKENING AND RELEASING GOD-GIVEN DREAMS IN PEOPLE AND SEEING THEM COME TO FRUITION! How cool would that be?!?!?

(Here's a couple examples.

Dream: "I don't know, but I would love to be able to help dig a well for a community in Africa that needs it." Answer: It lines up with the heart of God, so let's get together and build a freaking well!

Dream: "We would really love to be foster parents." Answer: It lines up with the heart of God, so let's believe and pray with you until you have a house filled with kids who would be dead in the water if God had not awakened this dream in you.)

NOTHING limits God, so why would would "we can't" ever be in our vocabulary if our dreams line up with His? Why has the "church" many times been a place where dreams go to die instead of being released into the hands of a miracle-working God Who has called us to partner with Him in that miracle (which is why He gives dreams to people and doesn't just wave His magic wand to make everything better).

So all that to say this: I want to be a church that helps people rediscover the dreams and purposes God has given them. Jesus went to the house of a child who had died, and told her grieving parents, "Don't cry--she's only asleep." Here's to seeing God speak life back into seemingly dead dreams by His redemptive power and grace, and then having the privilege of taking an active part in miracles that touch our community and our world.

Jason