The Dream

The dream is always the same. I am walking down a long, shadowed corridor lined with lockers. The kind of old, metal lockers you might see in a middle school, circa 1970.

 

 

There are never any people in this dream, except me, alone in an empty hallway. No color. No sound. No students. No teachers. No signs. No banners. Just a long empty hallway, with lockers that stand at attention, for as far as I can see.

 

The emptiness of the school overwhelms me. It’s as if others have gone on and left me behind.

 

I am not afraid. And I am not angry. But I am sad. And there is a sense of a lost dream that is too far gone to recover.

 

 

LOST DREAMS

I am too old. And that dream was when I was young.

 

I am too tired. And that dream was when I was more energetic.
I have had too many disappointments. And that dream was from when my hopes were bigger… and my faith was stronger.

 

What is it? What is the meaning of the gray and black shadowed hallway with lockers that go on forever? Too much Figgie pudding? One too many ghost stories?

 

No. It is my subconscious mind’s manifestation of an unfulfilled dream.

 

 

UNFULFILLED DREAMS

The longer we live, the more likely it is that we have unfulfilled dreams.

 

My locker lined hallway dream was about my not finishing college. Your dream may have been to retire early, or to travel the world, or to build a successful church, or to pay off your mortgage, or to … you fill in the blank.

 

Whatever your dream was. And however you feel about its demise, I want to encourage you that it’s not too late. Depending on age, circumstance, and divine order, the dream that burns within you may look different, or come to fruition in a way you never imagined, but rest assured, if it was a dream that was planted in you by God, He has the ability to bring it to pass.

 

 

RE-FRAMING YOUR DREAMS

King David desperately wanted to be the one to build the temple of the Lord, but because he was a warrior, the Lord deferred David’s dream to Solomon.

 

God gave David the ability to re-frame his dream. David came to terms with the fact that it was not God’s plan for him to be the one to fulfill his dream. And then he got busy preparing for the dream to be fulfilled for his son.

 

 

[David] gave much of his life to the dream he would never see. According to 1 Chronicles 28-29, he drew up blueprints, contributed lots of money and materials, collected offerings from the people, charged the leaders to see the plan to completion, charged Solomon with overseeing the task, and committed the entire project to God.-Chris Tiegreen, Faith. Hope. Coffee Break.

 

 

I re-framed my dream of getting a bachelor’s degree into completing a Certificate in Journalism. Amazingly, just this small achievement, made me feel complete, and my locker lined hallway dreams stopped.

 

A friend of mine, re-framed paying off his mortgage to selling his house, and buying a town home that he could pay off.

 

 

Another friend of mine re-framed her inability to conceive into taking in foster children.

 

What unfilled dream might you have that God wants to re-frame?

 

The Holy Bible promises that we are not without hope as long as God is in the world.

 

Let’s talk about it. Let’s pray about it together. Leave a comment, and tell me how  God is re-framing your dreams.

Debbie Simler-Goff

Debbie Simler-Goff is a Christian author, minister’s wife, and Grief Recovery Specialist® who works in hospice. She has contributed to three devotional books, and blogs regularly at www.dsimlergoff.com. When Debbie isn’t playing with her 11 grandchildren, she can usually be found scouting out the local ice cream shops.

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9 comments

  1. Loved this article!!! It’s a reminder to stop procrastinating in going back to college and also cleaning up a few other things in my life like staying connected with my family! Thank you!

    1. Thank-you Brianna! Yes, it is true, if we really want to see the fulfillment of our dreams, we must be willing to put the hard work required into it. Have a blessed day.

  2. As a child, sometimes we have a dream that we want to be a doctor, firefighter, or be the one who will find the cure for cancer. The same principle applies in our spiritual life is that we can see something in somebody else and help them to become more than they are.

  3. I’ve often had a dream of my own…and still don’t know what it means. Maybe I should figure it out, reframe it and move on as you suggested. Great illustration with the hallway. Love the article!

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