2019-01-11
Hebrews 11:26 NIV
Moses discovered that when you’re not fulfilling your God-given dream, a king’s palace won’t make you happy. “By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God…because he was looking ahead to his reward…he persevered because he saw him who is invisible” (vv. 24-27 NIV). When God gives you a dream, you’ll be able to see things that are “invisible” to others. This brings us to the next dream killer: Lack of imagination. Humorist Robert Orben said, “Always remember that there are only two kinds of people in this world – the realists and the dreamers. The realists know where they’re going. The dreamers have already been there.” God gave you the gift of memory to replay the past, and the gift of imagination to pre-play the future. Moses “saw” the Promised Land long before he got there. It’s what sustained him through forty long years in the wilderness. God didn’t make a mistake when He gave you imagination. Because of it you can stand in the middle of your dream and envision it before it comes to pass, even when others doubt it. So if you’re a dreamer who has already been there in your imagination, trust God and put your dream to the test. If you come from a discouraging background, or don’t think of yourself as an especially imaginative person, don’t lose hope. You can still discover and develop a dream. God has put that ability within you!
Soul food: Isa 34-37; Luke 2:21-33; Ps 71:17-24; Prov 2:3-5
Hebreërs 11:26 NLV
Moses het besef dat wanneer jy nie besig is om jou God-gegewe droom te vervul nie, sal ‘n koning se paleis jou nie eens gelukkig maak nie. ‘Omdat Moses geglo het, het hy as volwasse man geweier om as die seun van Farao se dogter bekend te staan. Hy het die swaarkry saam met God se volk verkies bo die kortstondige genieting van die sonde. Vir hom was die lyding wat hy ter wille van Christus, die Messias, moes deurmaak, ‘n groter rykdom as die skatte van Egipte… Hy het volgehou soos iemand wat sy oog op die onsienlike gevestig hou’ (verse 24-27 NLV). Wanneer God jou ‘n droom gee, sal jy dinge sien wat ‘onsienlik’ vir ander mense is. Dit bring ons my die volgende droomdoder: Gebrek aan verbeelding. Robert Orben het gesê, ‘Onthou altyd dat daar net twee tipes mense in hierdie wêreld is – die realiste en die dromers. Die realiste weet waarheen hulle gaan. Die dromers was alreeds daar.’ Moses het die Beloofde Land ‘gesien,’ lank voor hy daar aangekom het. Dis wat hom veertig jaar in die woestyn gedra het. God het nie ‘n fout gemaak toe hy vir jou verbeelding gegee het nie. As gevolg daarvan kan jy in die middel van ‘n droom staan en sien hoe dit bewaarheid word, selfs wanneer ander mense daaraan twyfel. As jy dus ‘n dromer is wat reeds daar is in jou verbeelding, vertrou op God en begin aan jou droom werk. As jy uit ‘n ontmoedigende agtergrond kom, of dink dat jy nie ‘n groot verbeelding het nie, moenie hoop verloor nie. Jy kan steeds ‘n droom ontdek en ontwikkel. God het daardie vermoë in jou geplaas!
Sielskos: Jes 34-37; Luk 2:21-33; Ps 71:17-24; Spr 2:3-5
2019-01-10
Numbers 14:24 NIV
Caleb was truly remarkable. No retirement plan or rocking chair for this guy! At eighty-five he dreamed of owning his own mountain in the Promised Land. And even though there were giants living on it, they didn’t discourage him one bit. When the people around him saw the giants and wanted to back off, Caleb factored God into the equation and said, “We will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them” (v. 9 NIV). Note the words, “We will swallow them up.” As you grow in faith you’ll start to “feed off” stuff the Enemy throws at you and as a result you’ll become stronger. Bottom line: You can choose to blend in or to stand out! God said, “Because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it.” Notice, Caleb had “a different spirit,” which brings us to another dream killer you must overcome: Lack of confidence. Dreams are fragile. And they’re at the greatest risk when they’re new to you, when the people you love and respect don’t approve, and when you have no past record of success to fall back on and give you confidence. That’s the point at which you must know God for yourself and have a relationship with Him. “The people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits” (Daniel 11:32 NKJV). The word “exploits” indicates that God can show you how to exploit, utilize, profit from, and find opportunity in even the worst of circumstances.
Soul food: Isa 30-33; Luke 2:8-20; Ps 71:1-16; Prov 2:1-2
Numeri 14:24 NLV
Kaleb was werklik merkwaardig. Hy het nie ‘n plan vir aftrede of ‘n rystoel gehad nie! Op vyf-en-tagtig het hy daarvan gedroom om sy eie berg in die Beloofde Land te besit. Selfs toe hy sien dat daar reuse op die berg bly, het dit hom nie afgeskrik nie. Toe die mense rondom hom die reuse sien en die aftog wou blaas, het Kaleb gesê, ‘…Moenie bang wees vir die mense van die land nie. Hulle is ons slagoffers. Hulle het geen beskerming nie. Die Here is met ons. Moenie bang wees nie!’ (vers 9 NLV). Soos jy in geloof groei, sal jy die aanslae van die Vyand kan teenstaan en sodoende sterker word. Jy kies óf om in die agtergrond weg te smelt, óf om uit te staan! God het gesê: ‘My dienaar Kaleb het egter ‘n ander gesindheid teenoor My gewys. Hy het by My bly staan. Ek sal hom in die land laat kom wat hy gaan verken het. Sy nageslag sal die land besit.’ Let op, Kaleb het ‘n ‘ander gesindheid’ gehad, wat ons by nog ‘n droomdoder bring wat jy moet oorkom: Gebrek aan selfvertroue. Drome is broos. Hulle verkeer die meeste in gevaar wanneer hulle vir jou nuut is, wanneer die mense vir wie jy lief is en respekteer dit nie goedkeur nie en wanneer jy nie ‘n rekord van sukses het waarop jy kan terugval en wat vir jou selfvertroue gee nie. Dis op hierdie punt wat jy God moet ken en ‘n verhouding met Hom moet hê. ‘…Dié wat in hulle God glo, sal egter sterk staan en doen wat reg is’ (Daniël 11:32 NLV). God kan jou wys hoe om geleenthede te vind, te gebruik en wins uit hulle te slaan, selfs in die slegste van omstandighede.
Sielskos: Jes 30-33; Luk 2:8-20; Ps 71:1-16; Spr 2:1-2
2019-01-09
Romans 4:17 NIV
When you dare to dream, God who “calls things that are not as though they were” is at work within you. But there’s a third dream killer you must overcome: Settling for average. A God-given dream will stretch you; you can’t reach for it and remain safely mediocre at the same time. The two are incompatible. When you settle for average, it’s tempting to blame it on others, or on your personal circumstances, or on the system. But the truth is mediocrity is always a personal choice. When you don’t have a compelling dream you are in danger of having your life merely slip away. Author Kenneth Hildebrand puts it this way: “The poorest of all men isn’t the one without a penny to his name. He’s the fellow without a dream…[he is like] a great ship made for the mighty ocean but trying to navigate in a millpond. He has no far port to reach, no lifting horizon, no precious cargo to carry. His hours are absorbed in routine and petty tyrannies. Small wonder he gets dissatisfied, quarrelsome, and ‘fed up.’ One of life’s greatest tragedies is a person with a ten-by-twelve capacity and a two-by-four soul.” If you feel that your life is closer to average than you want, you need to do more dreaming. Nothing will help you break out of your rut like a God-inspired dream. And if you don’t already have one, ask God to give you one. He may give it to you in an instant, or over a period of time, but He will do it.
Soul food: Isa 26-29; Luke 2:1-7; Ps 46; Prov 1:32-33
