Many of us carry dreams in our hearts that are either borderline or downright impossible for us to accomplish on our own. Audacious dreams like these take a lot of faith to chase, but at times, they can also feel like chains around our ankles when questions like What if it doesn’t work? or How will this ever happen? plague our minds.

But, these dreams were placed on our hearts for a reason, and for that reason, we should seek God through prayer when it comes to our dreams to learn what He’ll have us do concerning them.

God Will Show us Whether This Dream is Truly From Him, or Just a Desire of Our Own

Is this dream on our heart from God, or is simply a desire of our own that has no eternal value?

That’s a question many of us ask ourselves about our dreams, and it’s one we need to take to God in prayer to determine if it really is something He wants us to pursue, or if it’s something we need to abstain from.

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?  I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.

-Jeremiah 17:9-10, KJV

Our heart, if it is not chasing after the will of God, can deceive us into thinking our own desires are what God wants for our lives, when that is not always the case.

Yes, Psalms 37:4 states, “Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart,” which many believe means God is willing to give us anything we want. However, we often overlook the first part of that verse, which says Delight thyself also in the Lord, and verse five that follows it, which goes on to say, “Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.” More on that in a minute.

We build our relationship with Jesus through prayer, and through that prayer, we are free to express our desires to God; however, through prayer, God molds our hearts to align with His, changing us in the process. A non-dream example of this would be like praying for God to take vengeance on a person who hurt you at first, and then, over time, realizing that God wants us to pray for those who curse us/do us harm, so you begin to pray for them without bitterness in your heart.

So, what does all this have to do with praying for our dreams?

Well, when we pray asking for God to reveal to us whether this dream is of Him or some desire of our own, if the dream isn’t of Him, the Lord has a way of changing our hearts on the matter. Why? Sometimes, it’s because our desire isn’t biblical, which some may not realize at first, especially if they’re young in their relationship with Christ. Over time, as a believer spends more time in God’s word and in prayer, they will come to realize this and change their heart on the desire. Other times, though, the reasons why God may change our hearts concerning a dream that doesn’t go against His word may be unclear to us. But, be rest assured:

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

-Jeremiah 29:11, KJV

God has His reasons for planning things out the way He has. Sometimes, we may not understand why He doesn’t give us what we want, or why He makes us go through extensive waiting periods for something we feel He’s calling us to, but regardless, He has the best of intentions for all of us, and intends to use our experiences for His glory in one way or another. We just have to trust His plan and obey, even if we don’t get what we wanted. As Christians, our top desire should be for our wills to align with God’s, and as long as we’re doing that, we’ll be okay.

God Offers a Roadmap That Will Never Lead us Astray

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

-Proverbs 3:5-6, KJV

When we begin to question the validity of our dreams, or when doubts arise on our journeys to fulfill them, the first place we should turn to is to God in prayer.

Proverbs 3:5-6 reminds us that we are to trust God with all our hearts and have faith in Him rather than in our own understanding of things.

For example, say you’re an indie author who hasn’t sold any books all month, and you’re experiencing doubts about your dream of becoming a full-time author someday. You feel that God has laid this unshakable dream on your heart for a reason, but the present circumstances are making you doubt that it will ever come to pass. If you’re like me, you may even wonder if you’re horribly mistaken about what God has called you to do, and if you’re just wasting your time and breath on something that ultimately doesn’t matter. But, all that comes from our earthly perspective, not God’s eternal, kingdom-minded perspective. God is omnipotent, meaning He sees all, knows all, and can do all. Based on those facts, we should never allow doubt to deter us from pursuing our dreams, because through Christ, we can do all things (Philippians 4:13).

So, when we feel lost on the roadmap to our dreams, we need to seek directions from the ultimate Navigator, the One Who created every nook and cranny of the universe and Who knows us all by name. Because He is omnipotent, He is incapable of leading us astray, and as long as we trust in Him and do as He guides us, we’ll begin to recognize those doubts for what they are… daggers Satan throws at us to distract us from the mission God has in mind for us.

God Will Help Us Get Through Our Struggles and Will Give Us All We Need to Commit to This Journey

Let’s go back to Psalms 37:5 again, shall we?

Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.

Psalms 37:5, KJV

Earlier, we established that we need to seek God’s will for our lives over our own, and make sure the dreams we’re chasing are of Him. In what better way can we commit those God-given dreams to Him than having open and honest conversations about these dreams with Him on a regular basis?

Synonyms for commitment include words like “devotion”, “dedication”, “allegiance”, and “loyalty”. When we ascribe those words to people, this usually means that those people have an active and solid relationship with someone or something. Likewise, when an audacious dream is laid on our hearts, one we know is impossible to accomplish without God’s intervention, we need to commit the dream to the Lord often through prayer, discussing it with Him, admitting our weaknesses, and asking for guidance on how to move in it. I’m not just talking about a “hey God, help me” every now and then. I’m talking about intense heart-to-hearts with the Lord about anything and everything on our minds concerning this dream. If we’re as committed to making this dream come true as we say we are, we need to be just as committed to discussing it with God. And woo, y’all, I’m preaching to the choir here. I don’t do this often enough myself, and the Lord is working on me while I’m writing this out. It’s no wonder I’ve been feeling stagnant in authorship lately!

The second part of Psalms 37:5 tells us to trust in the Lord, and He shall bring it to pass. Again, in what better way can we prove to God that we trust Him than to bear our dreams to Him? If I didn’t trust someone, there’s no way I’d tell them my most personal thoughts, or reveal my weaknesses. No way. How, then, are we trusting God to carry out our dreams if we won’t even talk to Him about them, like we’re scared about what He’s gonna do when He finds out?

NEWS FLASH: HE’S THE LORD. HE ALREADY KNOWS. HE KNOWS EVERYTHING! We’re not keeping anything from Him just because we’re not telling Him about it. He just wants us to be willing to tell Him because He wants a personal relationship with us. He wants us to tell Him e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g.

(Wow, Lord, You are really driving this home for me today.)

So, let’s do that. When we’re struggling, and when we’re not. When we’re achieving, and when we’re not. When we’re full of hope, and when all hope seems lost… we need to take it all to Him in prayer.

Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face continually.

-1 Chronicles 16:11, KJV

Only then will we truly be chasing a dream worth living out.

Talk to Me, Arrowheads!

Do you pray about your dreams? How has God led you to chase or accomplish your dreams through prayer?

Aim high, stay strong, and always hit your mark.

-Allyson 😀