Living The Dream

Lately, I have found myself responding to the question about how I am with, “I’m living the dream!”. There was a season in my life when I believed “living the dream” meant arriving at a particular destination. I imagined a life absent of deep disappointment, painful losses, exhausting responsibilities, and unexpected detours. I assumed that if I loved God, worked hard, treated people well, and remained faithful, life would be smooth and predictable. But at sixty-one years old, sitting quietly beneath the weight and wonder of a life I could never have scripted for myself, I now understand differently. Living the dream is not living the life I planned, it is living the life God planned. And there is a difference. 

When I was younger, I imagined a different rhythm for my life. I thought certain prayers would be answered differently, some doors would remain open and that heartbreaks would never come to my house. However, I have seen both joy and sorrow sit at the same table. And strangely enough, despite all the twists and turns, I can honestly say: I feel incredibly blessed. I feel incredibly blessed because God has been faithful. The words of Jeremiah 29:11 have become more than a familiar scripture. Jeremiah’s words have given me life when I felt like giving up. Jeremiah’s words have given buoyancy to my heavy heart. 

I previously interpreted that verse through the lens of achievement and lack of difficulty. I thought hope meant obtaining what I desired. I thought future meant arriving exactly where I wanted to go. But now I understand that God’s plans were never simply about my comfort. They were about my becoming. And becoming often requires breaking. There were seasons when God lovingly dismantled my expectations because they were too small for His calling on my life. I wanted certainty, but He gave me trust. I wanted ease, but He developed endurance. I wanted answers, but He deepened my faith.

I am humbled by the words penned by Solomon in Proverbs 19:21. In those words, I am reminded of the difference between  my ambition and God’s sovereignty. I have dreamed, made plans, and strategized but God’s ultimate plan has prevailed. I have learned to fully subject my will to His because if what I planned prevailed, I might have missed the extraordinary privilege of servingGod by serving others. I might never have discovered the sacred responsibility of advocacy. I might not have recognized how God can use both pain and purpose to heal others. I might not have known the gift of watching people’s minds open to new understanding. 

Some of the very experiences I once prayed away became the soil from which compassion grew. There is a tenderness that only suffering can teach. There is wisdom that only disappointment can produce. There is empathy that only heartbreak can cultivate. There is also a deep intimacy with God that would not have developed if I had not been humbled by some of what I have experienced. I have found a new freedom in no longer looking for the impressive in worldly standards. I know that the words of Psalm 37:4 are true. God will change my desires to His desires for me if I delight myself in Him. I find my joy in God as I align my will with His Will for my life.

Jesus came so that I could live the abundant life; not a life full of things but a life that is spiritually full, where all of my true needs are met and living generously makes room for more. (John 10:10). I am so very grateful that as I have journeyed through life, my definition of abundance has deepened. Today, abundance looks like spending quality time with Kori, Xavier and Reese. Abundance looks like conversations with women who once felt invisible but now know they matter. Abundance looks like surviving difficult seasons with my faith intact. Abundance looks like sitting quietly in gratitude after all God has brought me through. Today, abundance looks like peace. And peace is a gift this world cannot manufacture.

I have also learned to rebuke the spirit of discontentment and embrace what Paul said in Philippians 4:11–12. I must confess that for me, contentment was somewhat difficult to learn. The Father had to cultivate contentment in me, He had to develop it in me, He refined it in me through experience. I had to learn that contentment is a settled assurance that God is and has always been with me in every chapter of my life; even the chapters I would not have chosen for myself. And if I am honest, some of the prayers God did not answer protected me from that which would have diminished me. Some closed doors preserved my peace, some disappointments redirected my purpose and some delays matured my spirit. In everything God allowed in my life He was working things together for the good (Romans 8:28).

Sisters, I am learning that perhaps that is what living the dream truly means. It does not mean living without difficulty, it means living with the assurance that God wastes nothing. My life has in no way been flawless life has been flawless yet my heart overflows with thanksgiving. I may not be living the life I once planned but God has blessed me to live a life filled with purpose, love, growth, service, faith, and unimaginable mercy.

And right now…I am living the dream!

Join me Under The Church Hat for this month’s devotion:

In less than 250 words, describe how your definition of “living the dream” changed as you have grown in faith and life experience.

List five ways that ways has suffering, heartbreak, or loss deepened your compassion, wisdom, or intimacy with God.

How has God cultivated contentment in you through the experiences you would not have chosen for yourself?

List five areas in your life where can you declare with gratitude, “I am living the dream,” because of God’s faithfulness rather than perfect circumstances.

Choose a passage from this devotion to meditate on throughout this month.