When God Gives You a Dream

As you look to God to do great things in your life, there are two facts you need to understand about the dreams he gives you.

First, God-given dreams require the support of others. Just like a building needs support, your dream needs support. True success is never a one-man show. Anything significant you do in life will require help from others. God intentionally wired us to need each other so we will learn how to work together.

The Bible says, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up” (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 NIV).

If you’ve been pursuing a dream on your own and you’re struggling, here are three possible reasons:

• You don't know everything you need to know.

• You don't have enough time or energy to do everything by yourself.

• You don't have every talent you need to accomplish your dream.

The bottom line is this: It takes a team to fulfill a dream.

Second, expect opposition when you pursue your dream. The moment you decide to go after the dream God gives you, someone will try to discourage you. The moment you say, "Let's do this," they’ll say, "Let's not!" Dream busters are literally everywhere. They are often resistant to change and feel it's their job to bring you down.

When Nehemiah made plans to rebuild Jerusalem, Sanballat and Tobiah, two critics of Nehemiah’s plan, “became very angry, because they didn't want anyone to help the people of Israel” (Nehemiah 2:10 CEV). They mocked and ridiculed Nehemiah and the people for their desire to rebuild. 

But Nehemiah didn’t waste time arguing with his critics—and you shouldn’t either. If all you did was respond to what others think, you'd never get anything done. Instead, like Nehemiah, respond briefly and move on.

Nehemiah said, “The God of heaven will give us success. We his servants will start rebuilding” (Nehemiah 2:20 NIV). Later, when his enemies tried to pull him away, he replied in Nehemiah 6:3, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down” (ESV).

Remember, to fulfill a dream, you need a team, and when you pursue a dream, you’ll always find opposition. When you understand these two facts about dream-building, you’ll be better equipped to fulfill God’s plan for your life.