Today my house is a mess. The livingroom, diningroom, kitchen and laundry room are filled with boxes and suitcases waiting to be piled high into the car for the upcoming Mantour Conferences. (Men’s Conferences the men’s branch of 4One Ministry holds in the winter and spring).
As I’m trying to navigate through the mess and keep my OCD self from having a complete breakdown that everything is out of place, there’s a little voice inside of me that says, “Your Mom would be so disappointed in you if she saw this mess.”
As a fellow clean freak who took very good care of her home, there’s an element of truth in that statement. However, it’s also a complete lie.
Because even though my Mom believed in organization and stewardship, her true passion was following Jesus and advancing His kingdom. One of her greatest dreams was that someday the home she cared for and invested in would be used as a home church. She dreamed that someday our home would be a place where people would come to know Jesus, grow in their relationship with Him, and His kingdom would be advanced.
I can’t count the number of times that we talked about this dream. Only Heaven truly knows the amount of hours spent praying over this dream, dedicating our property to God, and following Him in faith even when it made absolutely no sense.
Fast forward 20 years and my Mom’s dream has come true. Even though it doesn’t look anything like she imagined, (after all, who could even conceive of the internet in 1980’s), my house isn’t a mess because I’m lazy, but because it is the headquarters for 4One Ministries.
Our closets are filled with Men’s and Women's Ministry resources.
The dining room has a stack of books that are destined for men’s prisons and halfway houses.
The boxes and suitcases I’m tripping over are ready for 4 months of travel to men’s and women’s events.
Almost every inch of our home is being used to help people come to know Jesus, grow in their relationship with Him, and advance the Kingdom of God. Even though my Mom did not live to see it on this side of eternity, I believe that in Heaven, she knows that her dream came true.
…..her investments paid off
…..her prayers were answered, and
…..her faithfulness was honored.
So why am I telling you this?
Well, I hope that it will encourage you the way this truth encourages me.
You see, like many women, I understand how hard it can be to keep praying when it seems that answers aren’t coming, to keep believing when it seems like there’s just no way, to keep hoping when it seems hopeless, and to keep doing the right thing even when it’s hard.
My Mom understood this too.
Yet, she kept praying.
Because she was faithful in prayer, in doing the right thing, and in following God’s crazy plan, her God-given dream came true.
The same thing can be true for whatever you’re dreaming about, the vision God placed in your heart, the prayer that you need answered.
In the Circle Maker, Mark Batterson says, “Praying is like planting. Each prayer is like a seed that gets planted into the ground. It disappears for a season, but it eventually bears fruit that blesses future generations. In fact, our prayers bear fruit forever. Even when we die, our prayers don’t. Each prayer takes on a life , an eternal life of it’s own.”
What are you praying for today? What dream has God given you? How are you called to be faithful even when it seems crazy?
I hope this testimony from my Mom’s life encourages you to NEVER GIVE UP.
Keep praying.
Keep believing.
Keep dreaming.
Know that even if you can’t see it now–God, Who can see the future sees it. In His mind, it’s done. He’s just waiting for the perfect time to bring it to pass and see your dream come true.
No matter how impossible it seems, never give up. Who knows when your miracle is coming or what it will look like?
Galatians 6:9-10 The Message
“So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit”
