I had a dream that began to sprout just a few years ago. It was like a bug in my ear…that I couldn’t get rid of. I tried to ignore it. I tried to talk myself out of it. But it wouldn’t stop gnawing at my heart.
I whispered my dream to a few close family members….”I think I want to write a devotional book for dancers.” To my surprise…they thought I could do it. They thought I should go for it. I scribbled my dream down in my journal…not knowing if this was a real dream, or more of a totally impossible situation that I needed to let go of trying to pursue.
I slowly started looking into writing a book for dancers that would point them to God’s grace. It was the book my own dancing heart needed, especially on hard days at the studio. In a dancer’s world, so many lies need deflecting: “not skinny enough, not good enough, not strong enough…” and so I wrote to remind myself not that I was a good dancer, but that I had a good, good Father in heaven who would gladly lead me through this dancing journey.
I started my little blog…I remember it was Valentine’s Day of 2013. It was a way for me to rough draft these little dancing devotionals. I didn’t plan on anybody reading them…yet. But as all things that are written on the internet do…it spread…and I started finding dancers to encourage. And it delighted my soul. But just like in dancing, so many times, I would hold back. I would start to worry that my words may not be good enough. I would start to question my dream. I would start to worry about who was reading, rather than simply writing for an audience of One. And that quote by George Balanchine, the great choreographer that changed the landscape of ballet comes to mind…
“Why are you stingy with yourselves? Why are you holding back? What are you saving for – for another time? There are no other times. There is only now. Right now.”
That reminds me of this verse…
“Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” Matthew 6:34
Isn’t it funny how we can get so caught up in worrying about how a dream will turn out that we easily forget to enjoy the sweet dance of dreaming?
As I navigate this path of figuring out how to put my book into dancing hands like yours, there are days I want to give up on it. There are days when giving up feels like the good, godly thing to do…to just be content with the here and the now.
But the days I give up dreaming, are the days my heart gnaws at me most to not give up dreaming because (oh yes, it comes back to me…) the more we dream the more we pray, and the more we pray, the more in step with our Savior we become.
I just want to be in step with my Savior.
And today, maybe you need to know to…dream on. Because when you dream, it simply delights the Lord…He’s so pleased with you, He so loves you, and when you dream, you feel His pleasure. And I believe, when you dream, it makes HIS soul dance.
So I will keep dreaming for this little book…this book for dancing hearts. I will still struggle with whether the words will meet the expectations of the readers. I will still debate in my heart whether pursuing this dream will be worth it. And I will still get discouraged some days because the process feels impossible at times…the way seems shut down. But here’s the thing, my heart needs to hang onto most today…
We can still be content when we dream. Contentment is still possible when we follow where God leads us because contentment is a dance of surrender.
A content heart says, “God, whatever You want. Your timing. Your way.”
A content heart knocks at doors and a surrendered heart says…”God, open the doors You want to open. Don’t let me try and bust doors down.”
A content heart says, “God, You alone fulfill me, not this dream…not any dream.”
A content heart says, “I will dream. But in the meantime…I can rest in contentment because my God is enough.”
Here’s the other nugget I want to hold onto today…prayer is the rudder to our dreams. God invites us to partner with Him in our dream-chasing through prayer. You see, God can steer our hearts as we pray, and then He can steer our dreams through our prayers. When we pray, He sets us on the right course. When we pray, He shifts things in our hearts so that pride, selfishness, and ambition move aside, and pointing to Him becomes our goal. When we pray, God moves…even if we don’t see it…yet.
Maybe today you feel that it would be easier to give up on your dream, your goal, your wish, your….(what’s that thing for you?) Today, I want to encourage you…
PRAY ON
SURRENDER ON
CONTINUE IN CONTENTMENT KNOWING YOUR GOD IS ENOUGH
DREAM ON
He won’t lead you astray. He won’t open a door that should never be open, nor will He keep a door shut that should be open. He’s got you in this.
Would you pray…not for me, but for my little book…that it would get in your hands in God’s way and in God’s timing? Oh how, I look at books on shelves so differently now…each one went through so much to reach the shelf! Each one was a labor of love! Each one has it’s own timeline of years in the making! Wow, I heart books!
What dream of your heart is trying to sprout? How can I pray for your dream?
This is s beautiful devotional today, Sarah. You illustrate so beautifully the process that God uses to grow us. What a sweet thing to have your dancers pray for you and that your book will reach them. I think it already has and you don’t realize how much. It is worth waiting for and never giving up.
Sarah, thank you for asking how you can pray for me/us! That is so kind. Your words bring comfort as I have wrestled with what feels like the death of my dreams….but we know the power of resurrection with our Lord! Praying for your book and the dreams of your heart too. May God give you favor as you serve Him with your special gifts🙏🏼💜Blessings always!
I just want to say thank you for this post. It goes along with everything I have been reading/journaling in my Bible study this past week. This took it in a direction I wasn’t expecting, though! I don’t know about your writing meeting people’s expectations. I didn’t start to read this blog with a preconceived notion, other than a feeling that I needed to read it today. I do know that it deeply touched my heart.
I too, have been struggling with what feels like the death of my dreams, hoping it is not, and trying to live surrendered if it is. I am 33 now, and all I want to do is still dance, but I have a job and a marriage and a household and aging parent with multi injuries and a church that runs on volunteer power.:) And I feel led to go back to school this year, on top of all that – the goal being to learn enough about running a business so that I can open a dance school where students can receive quality technique instructions… as well as attend worship classes. The vision is to fuse the two with a sense of balance, to end up with an excellent and beautiful kind of worship dance. Perhaps this is the end of my dream… and the beginning of HIS.
I appreciate your prayers. I am already praying for you! Please know when the doubts rise up – your words have already touched somebody (and I am sure I am not alone in that).:)
Keep shinin’!:)
Thank you so much for sharing your heart! I love that you want to open up a dance studio! That is so exciting, and I will pray for you in regards to that dream! Thank you for praying for me! That means so much! Thank you for letting me know this post touched you…it blesses me more than I can say!
I like this, Sarah! Of course, keep dreaming! But, strive for contentment…. He is enough! Such good words… I feel in my spirit that your dream will happen (as far as a published work). But your dream is already encouraging so many through this blog. So wonderful to see you point others to HIM… nothing better!!!
Hugs and prayers!
Thank you, sweet Nancy! I always love your insight and sweet comments! Thank you so much for your prayers and support! So true…He is enough!
Thank you so much Sarah, needed this so much! I’ve been so caught up and overwhelmed by my upcoming exam in April 2019 (RAD Adv2) which i had experience many delays in taking the exam. I’m generally weak in muscles, strength and stamina, i see no way how I’m going to pass this exam. Now that I’m already working full time as an accountant makes it harder as I’m often mentally drained during night classes. I realized how my has body changed and I’m turning 26 next year. Things just seem to get harder.
Your blog has always been a huge encouragement to me, especially to continuously pray and surrender. God is in control, if He allows me to take exam, He will strengthen me too!
God bless and have a blessed new year! 💜
Grace (from Malaysia)