So close...

I have been amazed the past few days at the massive rain clouds that have lined up in the horizon around here seeming to shout out promises of rain. We have laid on our backs and identified more shapes in the sky than you can even imagine. We spotted Santa a few days ago lingering in the form of a distant cloud, and even formulated an animal parade that began with a bear and ended with an elephant.

Two nights ago I was outside jumping on the trampoline with the kids. My husband poked his head out of the back door and insisted that we clear the trampoline and come on in. He spotted lightening right over our lake on the front side of our property. We jumped off, ran in, and bragged to each other that we had successfully escaped the big downpour! The clouds we watched for over an hour grew bigger, darker, and looked heavier by the minute. They looked as full as the big bucket of water that dumps out at Great Wolf Lodge in Grapevine. If you have not been there, when the huge bucket begins to rain down cold water on all willing participants standing underneath it, there is no stopping the flow or escaping it until it is empty!

The next morning I asked my Dad for a weather report, including an estimated rainfall reading, because I literally did not hear a thing. As usual, he gave me a quick and witty response by saying "We missed it. The rain went right up the Trinity River and skipped over us. We did not get a drop!"

This whole issue with the rain missing us echoed a thought pattern that has been running through my head. I have had times in my life when the Lord lined up everything and had me ready for my next big adventure in life. An adventure full of purpose and passion that was created just for me. Much like the rain clouds moving on by without doing a thing, I too have moved on by and I let it my dreams die or even forgotten them altogether!

Do anyone know what I mean here? Am I the only one who has let fear, past mistakes, present circumstances, or even a negative word from someone else put my plans on hold when I knew deep within my spirit that God was saying "Let's do this thing!" Whatever your deepest dreams or plans may be, I believe that if we are a new creation in Christ, He places within us a desire that is bigger than anything we can ever accomplish on our own. At some point in our life, and I am grateful that it can happen more than once, everything lines up in our favor and it is our turn to step out in faith and make a something extraordinary out of our ordinary lives with the Lord's help!

Our purposes in life are obviously all very different. Maybe your passion is like mine, and you want to write that story down on paper that has been in your heart for so long and share it with others. Possibly going back to school or enrolling in college for the first time is what takes the top slot on your list of goals. Maybe it is starting a new business, beginning a ministry, or finally following through with an exercise plan to get in the best shape of your life. We are never to old or too young to dream big and begin working on our purpose.

Whatever it is in the way of your greatest dream or dreams, move it! Do not let everything line up, hear the drum roll begin, your name announced, and then let the moment pass by. It would be a waste to let your greatest purpose pass you by because we are all meant to be a blessing to others. What a tragedy that would be to not use your God-given gifts to do something meaningful in this life. When and only when God is involved, ordinary people can do extraordinary things. We may not reach the ends of the earth with our seemingly small dream, but better to start reaching those in our own little corner than to do nothing at all. When we missed the rain last week, it was out of our control, but dreaming big in life when the Lord draws out an idea in our hearts and minds is truly ours for the taking! Don't miss it.