Tag: dreams

better tomorrow today

Karla Lees

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I am a creative person, which can be a danger at times when I lose my anchoring.

Spending too long dreaming about the future can hobble your walk in the present.

We were meant to dream…but with the dreams God has for us to be dreaming. Dreams that awaken our soul’s deepest longings and desires, and single-mindedly pursue the passion they stir within us.

But the key is for God to be the one who gives us those dreams.
Which means we need to be pressing in close to Him regularly, and asking Him for the dreams He has meant for us to dream.

One of my deep down, never spoke about dreams in high school was to write a book.

I partly allowed the kind words of others to point me in a different direction for school and work, because I was too fearful to speak up and share my dream.

It took several years and a few major traumas for God to rekindle my love of writing into full flame again. When I had been in high school, computers were just coming into the mainstream, and I would never have believed I would end up writing a blog on my own computer every day!

I am trusting that the One who gave me this dream will stir up the embers until the spark catches on and it burns high with the fuel of my faith & His promises as it begins to unfurl.

How do i know this dream is from God, you may be asking yourself? I know I did.

1. I want to write because I have to. Its a part of me.

As God is the giver or our gifts & talents, I believe He hardwired to do so, and equips me to use it as He strengthens me. For God to give me a dream about writing fits with who He has designed me to be.

2. The dream never died.

God is eternal, and His words & promises are as well. What He has spoken comes to pass.

3. When you get confirmation.

When He reminds you through others who don’t know about your hopes & dreams, and they speak as if they are reading your secret journal, you can bet it was God! When He leads you to the right resources, a part of your spirit jumps and laughs within you.

I have another major dream He has spoken into me and over me over the past years. I am keeping that beautiful one even closer to my heart for its time has not yet come. So it is expectantly slumbering as I await for my Prince to awaken it.

Time spent pursuing Him will only add to the dreams He gives us, like colored paint adds depth and life to a black outline.

So I wait for the outline of my dream to write a book for His glory to unfurl. I have had a colored glimpse of what I think it will look like at the end, and am laying this dream down before its Giver so it will come to life as He leads.

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Dreams from God come true when we allow Him to take us by the hand as we sketch them out- whether its via word, music or art!

While I wait for what is to come, I draw close to Him today, to not miss out on what He has for me in the here and now.

My tomorrows are only in His hands if He has my today.

keeper of my heart

Karla Lees

In the past few days, a lot has gone amuck in my life.

Our dishwasher & dryer both died.
My son’s timetable is not right for his grade 12 year.
I feel like crap with aches and joint pain.
Money is tight, and its a shorter work week now.
I just dropped my daughter off to catch the train to school, my husband at emerge for a possible kidney issue, and am about to wake my son for his last first day at high school, all in the past hour.

Yet through it all, I have a deep abiding sense of peace.

Am I afraid? Am I fearful we won’t have enough for our needs? A smidge, but i keep reminding myself who holds my heart.

God.

He is the keeper of my heart, that entangled throbbing mess of emotions, hopes, dreams,hurts, brokenness and fears all rolled into one.

I can rest knowing somehow, someway, He will take all of this and weave it into His plan for my good, my family’s good.

For He promises me a hope and a future, not just in heaven, but here on earth. He has a plan to make my life make sense when i will look back on it one day.

And His character never changes.

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He always loves.
Forgives.
Shows mercy.
Showers grace.
Welcomes me home.
Covers me.

He has proved Himself trustworthy in previous storms in my life, why would He stop now?

As a worshipper, music (melody and lyrics) is very important to me. It seems I worship more when things are going awry than when they are going well. 

My need highlights His ability to meet it all the more.

So I will not despair, although I don’t know what the outcomes will be.

He has never let me go since becoming His, and will not let His grasp slip now.

When all else fades away, that He is all I need becomes more evident.

Keeper of my heart,
I lift my eyes to You,
Maker of the Heavens.
Standing in Your Presence,
You are never far,
Keeper of my Heart.
(variation on chorus of ‘Keeper of My Heart’ by Kari Jobe)

key holder

Karla Lees

Don’t ever toss the keys to your dreams to anyone else.

Chris Hogan tweet, @ChrisHogan360

There is only one person who should hold the key to your dreams.

You.

I recently met an author & speaker who mentioned that what comes between us and our living out our dreams, our calling is ourselves.

We are our own enemy.

We can easily be the stumbling block that stands in our way.

And if that’s not enough, out of our insecurities and fears, we can place the decisions for our dreams in the  hand of others, giving them the keys.

We were designed to give the keys to the professional driver of our lives, God.

His ways aren’t ours, and are so much better for us in the long run, even though we may think we are stuck in the pitstop or on a detour.

Stop worrying about whether others are going to give you their blessing to purpose your dreams.

Press close into His Presence, and seek His approval, His guidance to become who He wants you to be.

See your dreams take flight and soar, when you believe in His ability to strengthen and keep you.

When He is the only holding the keys.
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look up

Karla Lees

When I feel low, its usually because I have taken my eyes off of God.

When God is in His proper place, and I acknowledge how big, strong, mighty my God is, I can’t help but look up to Him.

Focusing on the problem makes it block out my view of God. It doesn’t mean God is not in the picture.

I was at a training course, where the teacher shared a part of someone else’s story.  A young man was crying out to God in a drug trip to reveal Himself. All the man saw was a tiny distraction, which led him down a tormented path for years.

When he finally went for healing and freedom, he asked God to reveal where He had been in the room at that exact moment.

God did.  He completely filled the room.

We can miss the bigger picture and how big our God is (as far as our finite minds can grasp an infinite God) when we narrow our focus.

When we limit our vision to what we think we should see, instead of seeing whatever God wants us to see.

Himself, reigning over all, no matter what we see going on around us.

We serve the one and only God, who is seated on His throne:
the Creator of all we can see on our earth, in our universe, and beyond.
the Savior of all people, who has never and will never stop reaching out his arms to them, us.
the Healer of all brokenness and wounds within us.
the Provider of all good gifts
the Guide who shares all wisdom, knowledge and discernment to all who seek and ask
the King who reigns forever and ever
and so much more!!!

In light of who He is, we need to remember He is greater than all we will come across:

The enemy who is being and will be defeated.
Those who hate and harm us.
Painful situations caused by sin & selfishness.
All disease, mental illness & sickness.
Losses and grief.
Broken hearts.

Today, I am reminded anew to lift my eyes up, and keep them focused on God, not how I may be feeling.

I will look up.
I will proclaim God reigns over everything happening in my life.
I will choose to put my hope in the One who gave so much for me.

Its never too late to look up.

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