Are your dreams "dishwasher safe?

"P.S. This mug we bought for you is dishwasher safe!"

I had to smile when I received this message because I'd already washed the beautiful mug on a high-heat dishwasher cycle. I hadn't given it any thought at all! For me, it was clear that the mug (which I'd filled with delicious coffee) was there to make me happy and then be washed again in my dishwasher. That way, it would be ready for the next cup…that's what the "cycle" of a coffee cup looks like.

Our lives often seem just like this! Sometimes we're "up," sometimes we're "down," but have you noticed how common it is for our lives to work in cycles?

So why do we fear when something similar happens with our dreams? When everything is going well, we tend to be full of faith: "Yes, I'm living out my destiny!" But as soon as we find ourselves in a "high heat wash" again, we often doubt and want to give up: "God, why do I have to go through this?!"

But what if it takes this kind of cycle to keep our dreams alive? What if the obstacles are, in fact, necessary?

"'If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?'" (Jeremiah 12:5, NIV)

Jeremiah, a prophet in the Bible, also complained about the difficulty of the path God had prepared for him. In doing so, he forgot the words God had spoken to him in the "good times": "'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart…'" (Jeremiah 1:5, NIV).

In the midst of things "heating up," Jeremiah saw his present circumstances looming large. God's words were no longer at the forefront of his mind. Yet God used this "heat cycle" in Jeremiah's life to show him that there was MORE to him than "racing with men on foot." Spiritually speaking, he was meant to race horses!

I encourage you today: don't forget what God promises, even when the road is difficult!

Whether you're standing, lying down, or walking through something challenging, His promise is for you, too! He does not give you dreams without giving you the power to make them come true! "The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it." (1 Thessalonians 5:24, NIV)

You are a miracle!

Déborah