"However, the Lord said to my father David,
'Since it was your desire to build a temple for My name,
you have done well to have this desire.
Yet, you are not the one to build the temple,
but your son, your own offspring, will build the temple for My name.'" –2 Chronicles 6:8-9
When our son was only four, he looked his mom and me in the eyes and asked, “Do you think I’ll make the Hall of Fame?” Don’t just settle for playing in the “bigs,” bypass Little League, shoot for being one of the best!
For most of us, the realization that we might not make it big came early. My dream was crushed when as a nine year old, after all the uniforms were handed out; I was left standing on the right-field line.
Time and reality barge in on even the loftiest dreams. David had conquered many, conjured quite a following, and confessed many a wrong to God, but on his incomplete-task list was rebuilding the temple for God. His “clean out your locker” day came when God informed him the dream was dead. You can feel the finality—the dream was not slipping from his grasp, but had fallen to the ground. Yet God has a much different perspective.
God commends dreams that place Him at the center, even when they fail to materialize. Getting to the “big show” with a desire to glorify God or striving to make a team because of the platform it provides to share Christ, are the kinds of dreams for which God says, “you did well.” The success of a dream may not be in its completion, but in its pursuit—measured by where we place Him.
1. What is your motivation as you strive for success?
2. Is your identity found in your performance or in the person of Christ?
1 Chronicles 28; 2 Chronicles 5–6; Ephesians 1:18-19
God, free me from the bondage of dreams built on performance rather than on bringing You glory. I want You at the center wherever that may lead. Amen.
