Phase 3: Dreams Part 1
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Big Idea:
Big Idea:
God wants us to discover and pursue His dream for our lives.
Intro:
Intro:
Good morning (Church Online)!
Here at The River Church, we believe Jesus is a big deal. We believe He is the biggest deal, amen?
Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.
He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation,
for through him God created everything
in the heavenly realms and on earth.
He made the things we can see
and the things we can’t see—
such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world.
Everything was created through him and for him.
He existed before anything else,
and he holds all creation together.
Christ is also the head of the church,
which is his body.
He is the beginning,
supreme over all who rise from the dead.
So he is first in everything.
In other words, Jesus is a big deal! And then, it goes on to say...
For God in all his fullness
was pleased to live in Christ,
and through him God reconciled
everything to himself.
He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth
by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.
Jesus is the biggest deal. He is God. He is Lord over all creation. And yet, for some reason, we matter to Him so much (He loves us so much) that He sacrificed His infinitely valuable life, so that we could be all that He created us to be!
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
You know what that means? It means we matter to Jesus. And He is so serious about us becoming all that He created us to be, that He died for us, even though we don’t deserve it. And, I don’t know about you, but hearing this compels me to take my life seriously.
And that’s one of the reasons we’re focusing on spiritual maturity as a church. We believe God is calling our church family to grow up in 2023. And we just began a sermon series based on the idea of recalibrating - getting back to the basics, or making sure we are focusing on the things that matter to Jesus. And to help do that, we’re going to spend the next 3 weeks speaking about God’s dreams for our lives.
Now, you might be thinking, what do dreams have to do with spiritual maturity? Well, everything!
When I say “dreams,” what I mean is “God’s purpose for our lives.” I’m talking about what Paul writes about in Ephesians 2 - becoming the masterpieces God created us to be… walking in the good works that He planned long ago.
God created us for a special purpose (He has a dream for our lives).
And He saves us not just so we can go to heaven, but so we can become His masterpieces!
…the problem is, we often ignore our God-ordained purpose. There are many reasons for this (many that I will discuss over the next three weeks), but Psalm 119 gives a major reason to consider...
Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things;
and give me life in your ways.
God has created us (God saved us) for an abundant, purpose-filled life… but all too often, we don’t pursue this dream because we’re too busy following worthless things.
THIS AIN’T RIGHT. Jesus is too big a deal… His death on the cross means too much for us to chase after worthless things - to just throw away the beautiful purpose He created us for. But this is how many of us live… with no care or concern about God’s dream for our lives.
Therefore, we must recalibrate. Because here’s a basic truth...
Spiritually mature people discover and pursue God’s dream for their lives.
Btw - I need to give credit where credit is due. The next three weeks is based on the new book by Rick Warren titled, “Created to Dream,” where he shares six phases of faith typically found in the journey of discovering and pursuing God’s dream for our lives.
In fact, a couple months ago, I preached on the first phase, “Discovering God’s dream for your life.” And instead of repeating that sermon, I’m going give you a recap, but also point you to the following QR code that will lead you back to that sermon, so you can re-listen to it this week.
Body:
Body:
In that sermon, I mentioned that Pastor Rick uses the acronym “D.R.E.A.M.” to help us take the appropriate steps to discovering God’s dream for our lives. And the first step is...
Dedicate your life to God
Dedicate your life to God
If you want to discover God’s dream for your life, you must first dedicate your life to Him!
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
You can’t live in God’s dream if you’re still living in sin. Sin separates us from God. It makes us passionately pursue “worthless things” over God’s purposes. It’s only after we turn from our sin (repent) and place our faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior, that we’re freed from the power of sin and can live for Him!
And don’t miss the “power of choice” Paul appeals to… even as Christians, we can still miss God’s dream for our lives because we never “choose” to dedicate our lives to God. You must intentionally shift your thinking… you must, by faith, say I WILL live for Jesus!
So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.
Have you chosen to dedicate your life to God?
The second step is...
Reserve time alone with God.
Reserve time alone with God.
One reason we choose worthless things (even as Christians) is because we live in a world where worthless voices are the loudest. Want proof? Open up the “screen time” feature on your phone. Most of us average 4-5 hours on our phone. Now look how much time is on the YouVersion Bible App. We are distracted by a million worthless voices… and it drowns out the One Voice that matters - God’s.
And if we’re going to discover God’s dream for our lives, we need to reserve time alone with God, to get away from the distractions and hear His still small voice...
Step 3...
Evaluate your abilities.
Evaluate your abilities.
God has gifted is people for His purposes...
However, he has given each one of us a special gift through the generosity of Christ.
Do you know your gifts? Do you know where your gifts fit in God’s Kingdom? You will need to discover God’s dream. [And if you need help with that, come talk to us at the connect table after church.]
Step 4...
Associate with Godly dreamers.
Associate with Godly dreamers.
Paul told the Corinthians...
Don’t be fooled by those who say such things, for “bad company corrupts good character.”
In other words, who you hangout with matters. If your friends walk away from Christ, guess which way you will walk. If you belong to a church that never challenges or encourages your faith… guess what? Your faith will be small - limited to sitting in a seat for an hour on Sundays, and praying before you eat.
But I believe God when He says...
For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
I believe God’s word when it says...
Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us,
And that’s why I want us to encourage our church to dream together! And if you’re to discover God’s dream, it’ll be important that you’re with us!
Finally, step 5...
Make your dream public.
Make your dream public.
My friend Joel Wayne, pastor of Chapel Pointe church in Hudsonville, MI (a church that is partnered with us to push forward the Kingdom of God in New England) says this...
Mature leaders (spiritually mature people) invite accountability.
Do you want to discover God’s dream for your life? Do you want to pursue it? Then, a very important step is making it public. Making it public makes you accountable.
That might make you nervous, but know this: Being accountable isn’t about putting pressure on you to perform. It’s simply an expression of faith!
He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
When you make it public, you simply say, “I believe God’s plan/dream for my life, and I’m committed to following it. I believe He is faithful. I believe He will complete it. And I’m making my dream public as way to be accountable - not to make it happen - but to trust God by faith!”
…and THIS brings us to the 2nd Phase of discovering and pursuing your dream… once you discover your dream and make it public, now you have to...
Decide to Act!
Decide to Act!
Pastor Rick says, “A dream is worthless unless you wake up and act on it.”
So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
Biblical faith is a verb. Your dream requires action. That being said, dreams aren’t reckless, because God calls us to be wise. Faith always involves building on God’s perfect wisdom. Therefore, here are 6 principles for wisely deciding to act...
Principle 1: Pray for God’s guidance.
Principle 1: Pray for God’s guidance.
Remember, first and foremost, this is God’s dream… so we need to ask, “What does God want?”
Nehemiah was a man of great faith. And God gave him a great dream. He was to rebuild Jerusalem after it had laid desolate for decades. And do you know what was the first thing Nehemiah did when God gave him this dream? He prayed!
that Hanani, one of my brothers, came with certain men from Judah. And I asked them concerning the Jews who escaped, who had survived the exile, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.”
As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven.
Prayer was Nehemiah’s first step in pursuing God’s dream. He asked, “God, what do You want me to do?”
Honestly, if we learned this one principle, we could save ourselves a lot of heartache and wasted resources...
But after we pray...
Principle 2: Get the facts!
Principle 2: Get the facts!
Faith doesn’t negate facts. The biblically wise ask, “What do I need to know?”
When Nehemiah began to pursue God’s dream, after praying, he gathered facts...
So I arrived in Jerusalem. Three days later, I slipped out during the night, taking only a few others with me. I had not told anyone about the plans God had put in my heart for Jerusalem. We took no pack animals with us except the donkey I was riding. After dark I went out through the Valley Gate, past the Jackal’s Well, and over to the Dung Gate to inspect the broken walls and burned gates.
[say inspect] Nehemiah wisely collected facts before deciding to act. We should too. Additionally, we don’t just gather earthly facts, we gather eternal facts! After we pray to God, we read God’s word because...
All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.
God’s word tells us what we need to know for God’s dream. And after we’ve talk to God (thru prayer and His word), we need to...
Principle 3: Ask for advice [from people].
Principle 3: Ask for advice [from people].
Experience is a great teacher. At times, God calls us to a pioneering work and we learn by first-hand experience; however, many times we can learn (better and faster) from the experience of others.
Plans succeed through good counsel;
don’t go to war without wise advice.
It’s wise to ask, “Who can I talk to?”
And this connects back to “associating with other godly dreamers” and “making your dream public.”It’s important that you don’t dream in isolation. Why? Because God calls us to a church - His family. We were designed to live and dream in community!
And here’s a harsh warning we may need to hear: When we don’t ask for help, we may have a pride-problem. Rick Warren says, prideful people (or for our context - spiritually immature people) would “...rather appear wise than be wise.”
God’s dream doesn’t require us to figure it all out by ourselves. This isn’t about us. It’s about God’s glory! And He wants us to dream in relationship with Himself and His people.
The next principle is...
Principle 4: Calculate the cost.
Principle 4: Calculate the cost.
God’s dream will cost you. Jesus told us...
Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?
Part of dreaming (as well as spiritually maturing) is rightly evaluating whether it is worth following Jesus as Lord and Savior. Because your dream might cost...
Your reputation.
Your financial security.
Your comfort.
It might even cost your life
Before we decide to act, we must honestly ask ourselves, “Is God worth it?”
Let me help you answer that… He is!
“Yes,” Jesus replied, “and I assure you that everyone who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or property, for my sake and for the Good News, will receive now in return a hundred times as many houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and property—along with persecution. And in the world to come that person will have eternal life.
I could share a thousand stories on how Jesus is faithful to this promise, but I’ll just pick one. 8 years ago, about this time, Janelle and I were driving from San Diego to Glastonbury, with literally four duffle bags and an iMac computer. We gave up everything to follow God’s dream. And those first few years were HARD! Sometimes we were HUNGRY.
At first, I was working as a manager for Boston Market. And thankfully, I was given a “free meal” for every shift I worked, because sometimes, that was the only dinner my family of 5 was getting. Moving to Connecticut was costly.
But we had already accounted for that. We knew God’s dream. And we decided to act, no matter the cost. And I can tell you, “It was worth it. He is worth it. Looking out over you - my church family, who are part of that dream - you are worth it!” And God ain’t even done yet! There’s more, amen?
Principle 5: Prepare for problems.
Principle 5: Prepare for problems.
Before deciding to act, we should ask, “What could go wrong?” Now, I need to give clarity on this, otherwise we can misinterpret this principle...
Following God’s dream does not require you to SOLVE all of your problems, but we should wisely prepare for them...
A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions.
The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.
The 6th and final principle of this 2nd phase is...
Principle 6: Face your fears.
Principle 6: Face your fears.
Following God’s dream will be scary. It will require faith. But that’s life in God’s Kingdom.
For we live by faith, not by sight.
Fear causes us to look at the (maybe impossible) circumstances and become paralyzed by fear because it’s not perfect. Everything isn’t lined up or understood. But remember what King Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived (apart from Jesus), says...
Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant.
If they watch every cloud, they never harvest.
Fear will keep you from God’s dream. Don’t give fear that kind of power over your life - it is NOT your master. Jesus is Lord! Therefore, face those fears and walk forward by faith. Boldly declare...
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
Ask, “What am really I afraid of?” Because if God is with us, there’s nothing to fear, because God’s promise is, “Perfect love (Jesus) casts out fear. (1 Jn 4:18).”
...So, as we begin to discover and pursue God’s dream together, let’s recap. We first:
Dedicate our lives to God.
Reserve time with alone with God.
Evaluate our abilities.
Associate with Godly dreamers.
Make our dream public.
Then, we need to “decide to act.” And 6 principles that can help us are...
Pray for God’s guidance.
Get the facts.
Ask for advice.
Calculate the costs.
Prepare for problems.
Face your fears.
Response:
Response:
So, as we close, let me leave you with a challenging thought: Your “yes” matters.
Your “yes” matters because God has given us a free-will.
That means our choices are real and matter.
Our decisions have impact.
What we say “yes” to matters.
When we say “yes” to God’s dream, our lives change, other people change, and our world changes.
God chooses to use our “yes” as part of the transformative process that brings His Kingdom from heaven to earth.
Additionally, your “yes” to the right thing matters. What I mean is it matters when you say “yes” to the wrong things - to worthless things. And not just worthless things, but even lesser things... Good things (in quality), but not God-things. It matters when you say “yes” to your personal-good instead of God’s-great (His dream).
Right now, you might be saying “yes” to really good things that are keeping you personally safe, risk-free, financially secure, and comfortable. That’s good. But at what cost?
What if God’s dream requires risk? Faith? Sacrifice? What if your missing God’s great because you’ve said “yes” to a lesser good? Don’t be content with your limited, immature good, when God’s glorious great is on the table - because it’s infinitely better!
I watched a video the other day on the difference between a million and a billion. Did you know if you got $5000 a day for 6 months, you’d be a millionaire. But to be a billionaire, you’d need $5000 a day for 547 years. That’s huge difference.
And the difference between your “yes” to God’s dream and settling for your good dream is even greater.
Finally, your “yes” matters because it’s worship. Jesus - the eternal King - died so you could say “yes” to His dream. And when we say “yes,” what we’re really saying is, “Jesus, you are worth it.” A “yes by faith” is worship to the God who loves us and gave Himself for us. The apostle Paul knew this, which is why he wrote...
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
[I give my yes to the Son of God] Are you ready to say “yes” to Jesus? If so, pray with me...
Father, turn my eyes from worthless things. Today, I repent of the sin that has distracted me from Your dream. I want to make room for whatever You want to do in my life. Today, I say “yes” to You. I say YES to Your dream. Give me the faith the become all You created and called me to be, in Jesus name, amen!
[One last thing… we got a baptism coming up. Some of you have given your life to Jesus, but you haven’t been baptized. You haven’t said “yes” to God’s command. Why? What are you afraid of? Your “yes” to baptism matters to Jesus.
Furthermore, some of you still need to say “yes” to Jesus as Lord and Savior. You’ve been coming to church and feeling the Holy Spirit tug on your heart to leave those worthless things behind - things that are destroying your life. What are you waiting for? Turn from those things and say “yes” to Jesus. Then... get baptized!
And I know, you might have other questions. And I’m happy to answer those questions. But you gotta come ask me those questions. Don’t let excuses get in the way of saying “yes” to God’s dream for your life.]
Thanks for joining us for Church Online. If this was your first time joining us, fill out a Connect Card. We’d love to say hi and send you a gift. Also, if you have prayer requests, would like to know more about TRC, or you decided to follow Jesus today - we want to hear from you. And there’s an easy way to do that on our website (riverchurchct.com), or you can text TRCConnect to 94000.