Your Dream is Not Dead, Just Asleep

You’ve been waiting and waiting for your vision to come to pass.  It’s beginning to look like as if all hope is gone.  You’re beginning to feel as if the promises of God will never be fulfilled, and you’re thinking to yourself “what
am I still trying for? If this is how you’re feeling? Then you need to rejoice, yes rejoice.  I know it’s not going to
be easy, because you really don’t feel like it, but that is the time to give God the praise and rejoice.  Why? Because God is not a liar. What He has promised will happen; it will come to pass. Your dreams, your visions aren’t dead, they’re just asleep!

When Jarius and his wife were told that their daughter was dead, Jesus challenged them and said: "Don't fear, just believe." Even though it was obvious to everyone present that their daughter, their only child, was indeed dead. No matter what their report said, the Lord told them not to fear, just believe. Were you listening? No matter what man’s report said Jesus said, “Fear not, just believe”. In spite of death, which to us seems so final, He was challenging them to believe that she would "be healed". How many of us faced with a situation like that could believe? Some of us can’t believe that we will make it to tomorrow, or have enough money to make it to the end of the month, or that our situations will ever change, so how could we believe that our loved one would be raised from the dead?  Yet, Jesus is challenging us to “fear not, just believe”.  Why? Because He sees what you are going through, and He is there with you, working things out for you, and if God is for you how can you ever think that He would allow you to fail?

Now let’s read a little further, “Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole”. Notice Jesus never said she was dead, He never said she would be raised from the dead, but that she would be made whole.  Jesus didn’t see the child as dead.  He didn’t see the situation the way they saw it.  He didn’t look at the problem and said it was hopeless. He looked at what He wanted to happen and it became so.  His faith gave substance to what He believed in, not what they said, and His faith brought it to pass.

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Heb 11:1).  

Jesus said she would be healed, because to Jesus, even death is not final. What they saw as impossible and hopeless, Jesus saw as an opportunity for His Father to be glorified. There was nothing to fear, nothing to panic, nothing to worry about.   Even death is not impossible to our God.

And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible (Mar 10:27)

If you've been told by the highest authority that your
situation is hopeless; that your dream is dead, then start rejoicing, because God's perspective are different than the world’s and His is the only one that matters. Jesus did not
see the child as dead. That is why He said; "Stop wailing,
she is not dead but asleep” Many of you need to hear that today and take heed. Stop wailing! Your dreams are not
dead, but merely waiting for God’s perfect timing. You
need only to believe in spite of what your circumstances are.  It may look as though you'll never succeed, as though you will never get the loan, as though you will lose everything that you have, but our Lord is challenging you today. Don't give up; hang in there. Trust Him in spite of all that is going on around you and you will see your miracle. Hope On! Hold On! When it seems like all hope is gone...hope on!  Don’t look at the promises of God through unbelief, stand strong in faith, give God the glory, and know that what God has promised He will bring it to pass.

He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being  fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform (Rom 4:20-21)

There have been times in my life when disappointment has dealt a crushing blow to my faith. It hurt so bad that I
wanted to give up, I even resisted Christ's urging to keep hoping.  I did not want Jesus to give me more faith to
believe only to have my hope crushed again. But thank God that He looked past all my moaning and groaning
and didn’t listen to me. He made me realize how hard it was going to be to resist Him.  Then He reminded me that
He needed me and that I couldn’t quit, no matter how I felt. He needed me to keep the faith, and keep the vision before my eyes.  He made me stop looking at things through my natural eyes, and to look at things through the eyes of Christ.  In other words, to walk by faith and not by sight.

Oh how He tested me to see if I would hold fast to my profession of faith.  To see if I could really learn to lean and depend on Him. To see if I could live the life that I preached about.  How could I teach it, how could I preach it, if I hadn’t gone through it. By doing this He caused my faith to grow stronger and stronger.  It was during those testing times that I learned that He never lies; He never fails; that He is faithful to keep His promises. I leaned that His ways, His thoughts were not my thoughts, and that He was able to do exceeding abundantly above all that I could ever ask or think. He taught me that His timing was always better than my timing. He truly taught me how to wait on Him.

Let’s read on:

And when he came into the house, he suffered no man to go in, save Peter, and James, and John, and the father and the mother of the maiden.  And all wept, and bewailed her: But he said, Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth. 

Another hindrance to your dream seeming as if it were dead could be the company that you keep. You can’t take everyone with you when it’s time to be about your Father’s business. Many of us need to do as Jesus did, take only those that will stand with you, and that need to be there. Put those out that would hinder you from hearing from the Lord, and doing what God has called you to do.  

Look at what happened to Jesus when He began to show them that she was not dead:  They laughed him to scorn, knowing that she was dead.  And he put them all out..
 
Many of your friends will not believe as you believe, they will laugh at you, call you foolish, and will hinder you from keeping focused on the vision the Lord gave you. Oh they are with you until the Lord starts moving in your life and begins to show you dreams and visions of things to come.  That’s when you find out who is with you and who is against you. 

Jesus’ disciples along with the father and the mother laughed.  They laughed at Jesus!   If they laughed at Jesus, surely they will laugh at you. So shut them out! In other words, shut out what they are saying to you about
your dreams, your hopes and your visions.  Stop discussing your dreams with them once they make it clear they don’t believe. Even our closest friends sometimes can and will hinder our walk with the Lord. What’s more important to you, hearing from the Lord, or making sure you have a lot of friends? You decide.  If they are true friends they will stand with you and pray you through, if not; Shut them out so you can hear from the Lord.

Look what happened when the Lord shut them out and was alone with the child. He took her by the hand and her spirit came again, and she arose straightway. 

Now do you see why it’s important to shut them out? Once you shut them out your will focus return, and you will see your dreams and visions become more of a reality than ever before. Your faith will begin to increase and you can believe God’s promises will come to pass.  Shut them out!  If Jesus did it, so should you!  He didn’t want their doubts, their fears, or their laughter interfering with what He was getting ready to do. Not that they were going to stop Him, but I believe He did this to demonstrate to us what we need to do in order to hear from Him, and to receive our blessings.  Shut the enemy out!  And don’t forget your enemy is not only in the physical, but it’s your doubts, fears, it’s spiritual wickedness in high places. 

Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.  

Shut them out!

The more we learn to believe in His word in spite of what is going on around us, the stronger our faith will become. Do not to trust in your faith to see you through. We are trust in our Father who loves us.  We are to trust Him to watch over His word, and to know that He will not allow them to return void.  We are to trust Him when He says, “No weapon formed against us will prosper”.  We are to trust Him when He says, “He will supply all of our needs” We are to trust Him when He says, “ I will never leave you nor forsake you”. We are to trust Jesus to make intercessions for us, for if He has promised us something, then surely He will bring  it to pass.  If He began a good work in us, then we can rest assured that He will accomplish the task He began in us. 

“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work  in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6)

So if you feel your dreams and visions are hopeless, and that what God has promised won’t come to pass, then start  rejoicing, because you are on the verge of a miracle! Your breakthrough is on the way! It’s your time to be blessed! For our Lord is about to raise it to life! God is not finished with you yet. Don’t give up on Him; He hasn’t given up on you! You are His delight!

 Your dream is not dead, it’s only asleep.

 

FAILURE IS NOT FINAL----unless you QUIT!

Ruth M. Lambert

I have good news for you…failure is not final!

Here are some steps to help you overcome failures of the past and begin with a fresh start, learning from the past but not dragging along the baggage.

1. Remember that failing does not make you a failure. You are only a failure if you won't get up after you have fallen.

2. If your failure involved sin, confess and repent before God. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. 1 John 1:9 (NLT)

3. Know yourself and what you are called to do. Don't let discouragement or emotion or people's opinions govern you. Keep focused on the job at hand.

4. Learn to like yourself. Recognize that your self-worth is not determined by what you do, but by Whom you belong to. You are a child of God. You are clothed in the righteousness of Christ.

5. Don't compare yourself to someone else. God has called you to be you. You are precious and valuable to Him.

6. Resolve to get up, rather than give up. I have heard it said that failure is not an event-it is an opinion. As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. Don't see yourself as a failure. Get up and move on.

7. Don't allow your past to determine your future. You will never succeed as long as you live in regret.

8. Focus on your mission, not your mistake. Focus on God, on His power, and on what He has called you to do. With Christ, all things are possible.

9. Trust in the God who called you. Place your confidence in Him.

10. If you fall again, get up. Failure is not final!

No matter what has happened in the past or what you are facing today-God is bigger than your situation. Don't look at your failure or problem. Look at Jesus. Follow His plan, put your hope in Him, and expect good things!

FAILURE IS NOT FINAL----unless you QUIT!