God planted a dream inside of you and I am guessing that some of you believed that at one time, and had evidence to back it up – but, as it goes, I know there are a handful of you out there that feel like your dream is barely a memory now, lost in the thick of day-to-day and disillusionment.

It makes me think of a fire.  We take so much time setting it up, making sure that the sticks are in the best position to start, feeding it faithfully so that the flames will grow and give warmth, and then finally, once it is burning, tending to it, moving logs to keep the flame strong.  Once the fire is going strong, we sit and enjoy the flames until they become only hot embers and eventually die altogether.
That fire, after it has burned all of the logs to ash, even if it still has hot embers, may need more than tossing another log to get the flame to return. Sometimes to get that fire going again, someone needs to get close to the hot embers and breathe oxygen onto them so a flame can start and light the wood that is waiting.  Some of you might think your fire has gone completely out.  Maybe you have been learning new things, throwing sticks and logs of information and ideas onto dreams and embers that were hot once, but to no avail.  You keep waiting for just the right stick to land and start the flame again, just the right log to get things warm. But it seems like the more you throw on it, the more you risk stifling it from ever coming back.  To make matters worse, you are fully aware that there are people that have circled around your fire trying to get warm by what you have to offer.

“There is no shortcut to keep the flame going, it takes consistent tending..”

Most of us have experienced this in one way or another,  and for you who are in the thick of it right now, I want to remind you – fires are resilient, and so are you.  This is not the end of your story, and you can get the flame burning again by doing things just a little bit differently. It is likely that your fire doesn’t need more logs, but it is desperate for some oxygen.  You can get that oxygen two ways – the first – get some help. If you are too tired to breathe deeply and blow on the fire you have been tending by yourself, reach out.  Ask someone you trust to help you. Sometimes it is the simple act of being honest about where we are that gives us the burst of life that we were desperately trying to create on our own. This life was never meant to be lived alone, and your ministry is too big for you to shoulder alone. Reach out and get some help, this is not failure – this is by design – this is life.
The other way you can create the needed oxygen is by creating movement.  The best way to create movement is to move. Just do something. Get out of your comfort zone and do something, maybe something on your list, perhaps something else, but whatever it is, you need to get moving, get started, and do something!  It is amazing what life-giving oxygen comes from movement. It can reactivate hope, dreams, and progress. Don’t keep staring at the embers, far away from the revealing ash and unburned logs. Get your face up close and blow with all your might – do something, move, remember what you are trying to accomplish and what helped you have the nerve to start all of this in the first place.

Once you see the spark, you just have to keep at it.  There is no shortcut to keep the flame going, it takes consistent tending,  Some claim that to do this a personal growth plan is the only way to go and I tend to agree with them.  Having a plan and then following through with it is the best way to determine that you are going to meet your potential. And while planning can feel intimidating, it doesn’t have to be that hard.  Just do it consistently, and take one logical, thought-out step, at a time. We have to initiate the change, it is true – and we can do that if we are willing to honestly evaluate the fire that is in front of us.  If we see it dying, we need to change something or start something new. If the fire is barely embers, we can’t ignore that and hope it changes, we need to take the time and the care to get our breath back so we can breathe new life into our callings and our passions.

We can do this!  

Ask yourself today, “What area should I start with for personal development? What do I want to do? What is an idea I have that is out of my comfort zone that I can do right now?”   Please call me and let’s talk about your personal growth plan, or to discuss a new vision for your ministry.  God has a dream for you and I can think of no greater honor than to help you find it!