I'm woman enough to admit my dream is daunting.
Some say if your dreams don’t scare you, they’re too small.
So, I guess I’m on the right track. I’m scared that I won't achieve my dreams. Terrified I'll fall flat on my face. Petrified I will misrepresent the Bible unintentionally. Faint-hearted I might lead someone astray. Intimidated the quality of my crafts won't measure up. I fear failure. And Success. By man’s standards.
But man's standards are not God's standards.
If I fail by man's standards while clinging to my faith in God, I will still have eternal success. Realizing my fate rests in God’s hands neutralizes the fear of falling on my face that threatens to keep me from taking a leap of faith. In fact, taking a leap of faith is one of the best ways to learn to trust and rely on God. By stepping out into the unknown we can get to know Him better.
Fear looks inward, but faith faces upward.
One way I conquer my fears is to name them. Because by giving them a title I realize they are based on my own abilities or accomplishments. Here are a few more of mine:
making a fool of myself
failure
offending someone
wasting my family's resources
being so successful I can no longer manage it
running out of things to say
too little, too much, too soon, too late
Oh my goodness. I could go on. And on. And… You get the idea. But I have found, naming my fears helps me tame them. Go ahead, write your’s down on a scrap of paper.
I’ll wait….
Once we’ve acknowledge them, we pile them up at the foot of the cross and leave them there. That’s where we trade our fears for faith in God who has dominion over anything that scares us. When we look to Him who loves and forgives us, and provides for our eternity, we learn we don’t have to lean on ourselves alone.
Fear looks inward, but faith faces upward. #Dreams Click To Tweet
Dreams are Daunting when our Fears Distract Us from our Faith.
Fear creeps in often, but the Bible tells us not to. So, what should we do instead? Have courage. Enjoy peace. Remain confident. Easy to type, hard to do. Unless we know where our confidence originates.
In the Bible, confidence is sometimes translated as hope, and friends, our hope is not in our dreams. When we place it there we give fear a foothold, because then our hope hinges on us. Our hope is in Jesus. And not just in His ability to make our dreams come true. But rather in His ability to bring us into perfect harmony with the Creator.
Our hope isn't in our dreams.
Click To TweetOur hope isn't about our ability to achieve anything. Our hope is in Jesus. And what He accomplished for us on the cross. Achieving my God-given dream has nothing to do with my salvation. You see, if achieving my dream is really in God's plans for me, He will make it happen and nothing in heaven or on earth will be able to stop it. But it’s possible that His plan for this dream is more about me learning to trust Him more. Maybe this dream was meant to test my faith. If so, I will still rejoice, because I know that the testing of my faith produces perseverance, maturity, and completeness as a Christian (James 1:-24).
But I'll never know unless I leap.
If I've used the tools of discernment and detect a green light from God, I have nothing to fear. Even if my dream fails, my hope in His promises never will. When dreams are daunting, we move forward in faith with the hope of heading heavenward.
Fixing our hope on His promises and not our dreams fills us with the confidence to take a leap of faith.
Fixing our hope on His promises and not our dreams fills us with the confidence to take a leap of faith. #Dreams #Fears Click To Tweet
As a bonus for you, I created these encouraging Scripture cards for days when Dreams are Daunting. Just join the growing community around My Messy Desk to download them.
*Click on the title link that appears after you enter your information and hit send or check your e-mail for a link later.
If your Dreams are still Daunting, my friend Alisa at Flourishing today has compiled 12 Dynamic Resources to Help You Conquer Fear.
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Don't miss the other great posts in this series:
Dreaming with a Dose of Discernment
Dreaming Doesn't Mean Discontent
Dreaming Isn’t All Dandelions and Daffodils
And coming Soon:
Living the Dream
Dare to Dream Again
For more encouragement please join the discussions on these fabulous blog link ups – Suzanne Eller, Thought Provoking Thursday, Susan B. Mead, Faith Filled Friday, Grace and Truth, Faith and Fellowship Friday, Grace and Truth Friday, Good Morning Monday, Soul Survival, Monday Musings, Rah Rah Link Up, Tell His Story, Woman to Woman Wednesday, Women With Intention Wednesday, Sitting Among Friends, Testimony Tuesday, Planting Roots, and Fresh Market Friday.
I love this distinction and careful directive to keep our eyes focused on the Object of our faith – not just our dreams, which come and go.
Blessings to you!
It’s so important, isn’t it! Though everything else may fall away (our dreams included), the Word of the Lord will remain. Our perspective must remain eternal to make right decisions. Blessings!
This post is so in sync with my own fears and attitudes about my blog ministry! Thanks for writing it. It will bless the next woman trying to overcome her fears to take that leap of faith into serving Him!
And I love your idea of naming it. I need to get better at that!
I hear ya! It’s not easy, is it? So glad we have each other to walk this road together! XO
Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood & righteousness!
Love how you put this together. You are a success in my eyes!
Keep on keeping on…..xo
AMEN!! Thank you for your constant encouragement!! XO
So many good thoughts here, Liz. And you are so right about God’s plans for our dreams … we’ll never know what they are unless we leap.” Easter blessings to you and yours!
Thanks, Lois! Gotta take that leap to see where God leads! A Blessed Resurrection to you and yours, also! He is RISEN!
The shift from putting our hope in Christ to our dreams and desires can be so very subtle. I’m discovering that angry reactions are usually indicators that I’m seeking life out of my dream rather than my source, Christ. Liz, this is such a great series!
Amen, Ginger! It can happen without us even realizing. I think for me, that’s why we have to intentionally lay our dreams down daily. That’s fantastic that you’ve zeroed in on that indicator. Blessings as you dream big and hope in Jesus! XO
Our hope isn’t in our dreams or abilities, our hope is in Jesus -love this Liz. Go chase those dreams girl!
Amen, Jill! You, too! blessings!
This has been a good series, Liz. I love your suggestion here to meet our fears head on by naming them! That’s powerful. So often I have a vague sense of fear or anxiety, and I do think naming it helps us see how small it really is compared to Jesus and His power.
Naming it also forces us to consider what we are actually afraid of. For me, that has been transformational in multiple areas where fear threatens to make a MESS of things! XO
Yes, it is easy to get lose in the enormity of our dreams…especially when we think we should be able to do it on our own. Only when we remember that the object of our faith is also the move and shaker of our dreams do they become exciting and not intimidating. Thanks for sharing on the #sundaythoughts link up.
Thanks for stopping by, Jamie! And for hosting the link up. We can do nothing on our own…why do I forget that so often???
This might be my favorite post yet in this blog series! Sometimes our dreams are big and can be scary, but when we learn to trust and get to see God at work – my goodness, isn’t it worth it? All because we knew we couldn’t do it to begin with. It had to be Him. Great post and thanks for joining #MondayMinutewithGod
Having a front row seat to watch God work is so worth it!! XO
So true, it changes a lot if we can keep our eyes off ourselves and our fears and firmly fix them on God and his faithfulness and remember that if the dream is from him, he will lead us to its fulfilment.
Amen! God is leading us all closer to Him, that is what I desire most in chasing this dream! Blessings!
Oh the bully of fear. Too often I don’t recognize things like this as fear though—satan is tricky that way. He’ll disguise fear with “being responsible,” “being reasonable,” “being rational.” But, you’re right – the bottom line is fear. — And I, too, am finding that our dreams and goals have very little to do with us, but with our relationship to Him, and how He wants to use us for the good of others. And, I love that. 🙂 — Happy Easter, Liz. ((xoxo))
That’s so true, Brenda! We can really rationalize a lot of our fears. Easter Blessings to you, too, Brenda!
Our hope is not in our dream…. but in Jesus. I think you may have hit the nail on the head with that one. I am quick to be overwhelmed by the goals and dreams that society leads us to make and achieve…possibly because I don’t have the right perspective. In an interview I heard with Laura Story yesterday she said It’s not so much about what want to try and accomplish as it is What is God trying to accomplish in me. LOVE it when God grants confirmation through so many sources. Thanks Liz ♥♥
Yes, yes, YES! Love that, Heather. Thanks for sharing! Blessings!
I just found your blog…what a great post for me to land on! I’m dreaming big with my blogging career and needed that reminder to not rely on my own strength and abilities but on God’s will and blessing.
Lovely post and reminder.
Stephanie
Well, welcome! I’m so glad you found some God-encouragement in the words I offered in this post! That has been such an important lesson to carry with me through the years! May God bless your endeavors as you seek to glorify Him in all you do!