What did you once dream of doing? Our pastor asked this question tonight and I remembered how I dreamed of being a ballerina when I was about 10 years old. I got a beautiful ballerina doll for Christmas, and I spent many hours spinning her around on her toes and thinking about what it would be like to dress up in a tutu and ballet shoes and dance on a stage. That dream vanished when I took a ballet class when I was about 30 years old --trying to gracefully leap across the room caused me to collapse in laughter and never return to the class. I also wanted to be able to ice skate like Dorothy Hamill, but reality struck when I couldn't even stand up on ice skates. Obviously neither of these dreams moved me to pursue them --
The sermon tonight was from Acts 20: 22-27 and the key phrase from verse 24 was "None of these things move me." Paul was on his third missionary journey when he said these words, and he was on his way to Jerusalem -- understanding that trouble and tribulation were ahead of him, just like in the other places he preached the message from God. He didn't know exactly what was going to happen -- but he trusted God to be with him. He let God choose his destination and he didn't plan to retire, even though he had worked hard planting churches and was probably tired. He was going to keep running the race, dedicated to the end. Nothing else moved him. He was focused on sharing the message of God. None of us can really know what the future holds, and that is probably a good thing. Paul was heading on to Jerusalem, trusting God with his life. Sometimes I get caught up in the "what if..." and that's when I really have to give it to God. I want to be led by God -- and let nothing else move me. But I am easily distracted, so I thankful for these messages that remind me of my one dream that has never vanished-- my dream to be a "good and faithful servant" used by God.
