When God Uses What’s Hard to Show Us His Best

January 28, 2015 By Melissa Aldrich 2 Comments

My husband tells me he’s heading to the ER around 2:30. I say something dismissive and fall back asleep.

He texts me at 6:00 to tell me that he’ll be having surgery to remove an appendix very soon.

I beg my small group for prayer in an email while waiting for the kids to wake up so we can go to the hospital.

My small group leader texts back me to say she’ll be there in 30 minutes to get the kids.

Breakfast, kisses, good-byes, and off to the hospital to be with my husband.

He’s wheeled into surgery an hour later and I spend the time texting and talking until I’m worn.

Doctor sits me down in the conference area. Tells me it was bad. Perforated. Waste leaking into his blood stream. Hubby will be in the hospital for at least three days.

Three days stretches to six long days. Children are shuttled to and fro from one kind friend to another. I’ve called clients and postponed appointments. I walk with him in the hospital. Rub essential oils on his tummy. Eat meals brought by friends. Make fun of his “gas baby.” Take trip after trip to the hospital with the kids who refuse to go a day without seeing him. Put the three to bed alone and exhausted. The days run together.

And all of a sudden, he’s home.

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Memory fragments over trauma and these fragments are from early November.

October had been the best month I had ever seen as a photographer: five paying clients (my maximum!) and a trade with my CPA for photography if he’ll keep my taxes straight.

Then November comes crashing down with my husband’s appendectomy in that first week of the month. My God-sized dream of photography drops to the very bottom of the to-do list and I inch forward on survival mode hardly knowing when a day has passed.

But this temporary suffering was more of what God had for me. The suffering was its own form of a God–sized Dream.

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I’ve never felt quite at home with a group of people. Being a strong-willed introvert with decisive leadership skills but a one-to-one social awkwardness has often felt like a thorn in my flesh. Sure, I can take your problem, analyze it, give you a 12 step action plan, and rally a whole crowd to do it… but making friends scares the pants off of me.

For six long days in the hospital and almost a week afterward, people rallied around me and I wasn’t leading them to do it. God was leading them to do it. God was leading them to whisper gently into my biggest fear. He was sending them to counter the lie that I didn’t matter to anyone. They countered the lie that my unique set of skills were valueless.

So my husband had an appendectomy and we all suffered through a week of being stretched in so many different directions. Meanwhile we listened to the chorus that we were valued over and over and over through one small act of service after another.

Through it all, a tribe that I didn’t know I had arose. This tribe that had pushed me toward Him, delivered meals, provided childcare, and whispered His words over me in an hour of need.

Sometimes suffering is part of the plan for us. Sometimes suffering meets one of our definitions of a God-sized Dream: wanting more of what God has for us. (<====Click to Tweet)

Shared By: Melissa Aldrich

Come As You Are – A Welcome Invitation

December 3, 2014 By Kristin Smith 13 Comments

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As you may have seen from our posts and pictures, several of our core writing team traveled from across the country and met at Allume this past October. It was fun to spend time together as a team, and an amazing opportunity to meet with so many new friends and dreamers as well.

We decided to host a little “meet-up” so we could visit with some of these new friends in person. While the majority of us who gathered ended up being part of the original God-sized Dream team, it was a wonderful time to come together and share about where we have been and how we see God leading and moving in our lives and dreams going forward.

Prior to the meet-up, I was up in my hotel room with one of my roommates and fellow GSD writer, Delonna. We were gathering up everything we needed to bring downstairs. Before we walked out the door, Delonna asked me if I thought she should change her shirt.

Now Delonna is a die-hard Ohio Buckeyes fan. DIE-HARD. Whooo, watching a game with this woman was an experience, especially when the game went into overtime. Yikes! 😉

She had been wearing her Ohio State T-shirt all day and wondered if she should change it. I probably looked at her with my crazy eyes and asked her why she would do that?

She said she wanted to make sure that she was making the right impression at the meet-up.

I told her she looked beautiful and to keep the T-shirt on! 🙂

This got me to thinking the next morning in the shower (that IS where I do my best thinking…I really need a recorder in my shower so I can get all these thoughts and prayers down during that time!!)

We always want this space to be a place where you can come as you are. (<===Click to Tweet)

If you are a sports fan and love wearing sweats more than skinny jeans – you are welcome.

If you haven’t spoken your dream out loud and wonder if you even really belong here – you are welcome.

Maybe your dream is being a good mother for your children, but you think that is not a “big enough” dream – you are welcome.

If you are living out your God-sized dream but feel weary, or wonder if this is “it” – you are welcome.

You see none of us here are perfect and we don’t expect you to be either! I realize you probably know this already. However, I wanted to make absolutely sure you heard it again, just in case you had any doubts.

I am a person who doesn’t know a lick about football. I watch the Super Bowl just to cheer for the underdog. That is the only game you will find me watching all year. I love scarves and jewelry and all things girly…and Say Yes to the Dress.

Even though Delonna and I have different interests, tastes, and life experiences, God has brought us together and she is one of my dearest friends.

I laugh hard when we are together.

I look to her for her wisdom, prayers, and direction when I am facing a tough situation. God brought two unlikely friends together in such a unique way and I am so grateful.

Our friendship is a reminder to me that we can come as we are.

I don’t feel the need to put on a show for her and she doesn’t for me. We know we have faults, and we love each other anyway.

Friends, each of you is special to us in that same way. You don’t need the latest fashions to join us in this space, you don’t have to have your dream figured out. Heck you may not think you have a dream at all, but you just love the camaraderie and community that we have here.

We need each of you to make this space what it is – an encouraging place to love well, differences and all.

So consider this your welcome invitation. Our door here is always open and you can come as you are! (<====Click to Tweet)

Shared by: Kristin Smith

Even in the Rain…

November 10, 2014 By Genny Heikka 3 Comments

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“Are you okay to go if it rains?” My friend’s text pops up on my phone just before we’re supposed to go walking together.

I look outside. Dark clouds hover where it was clear just minutes before.

“Sure!” I text back.

Even though I don’t hesitate when I answer, I have to admit, if I wasn’t going with her, I might decide not to go. Instead, I might stay home or go to the gym where it’s warm and dry.

But we head out together, and the hour flies by.

We barely notice when the rain starts to fall.

Because what’s a little rain when you’re with friends?

Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. Likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. But how can one be warm alone? A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. -Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 NLT

It’s like that with our God-sized dreams, too.

Pursuing dreams comes with exhilaration and joy, but it also comes with challenges, uncertainty, and maybe even disappointment at times. And on those rainy days, having someone by our side matters.

When my husband’s job got transferred and we first moved to Idaho, I remember looking out my front window at a group of women who would go walking together some mornings. I watched them with longing, missing my friends in California. But days passed and friendships began, and pretty soon I was out there walking too. And things started to feel right again.

There’s just something about women coming alongside each other that makes life richer and more meaningful.

There’s something about friendship that makes even the bad weather days good.

So as you move forward to pursue your God-sized dream, if the rain falls or a storm hits or you encounter a pause or detour, remember you’re not in this alone. There are others beside you who want to share your journey.

And here’s the beautiful truth: We don’t have to be stoic and mask our hurts when things aren’t going the way we hoped. We don’t have to put up walls and put on smiles and act like everything is perfect when it’s not. We don’t have to compete with each other even if we have the same passion or goals, because our talents are different and our paths will be different and the outcome will be different because God will use each of us uniquely…and we are still in this together.

When we stand by each other–even when the clouds come and the winds blow–we can march forward arm in arm,

and not let the rain stop us.

What about you? Do you tend to retreat and isolate when you face challenges or setbacks, or do you reach out to your friends? Could fear or pride be keeping you from sharing your dreams with others or sharing what you are facing on your journey? Don’t miss out on the beauty that vulnerability can bring!

Shared by: Genny Heikka

Standing Firm, Together

October 20, 2014 By Crystal Stine 1 Comment

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Have you ever taken a single strand of string and tried to break it? It snaps pretty easily, right? But what happens when you take that single string and braid it together with two more? As the individual pieces weave in and out of one another, they become stronger – together.

We’re like that, too. As we ask God to reveal His dreams for our lives and we say “yes” to chasing what He has placed before us, we can feel weak, vulnerable and unprotected. But Scripture reminds us that there is strength – and safety – in numbers. We’re not meant to do all of this on our own. We need a support system around us, friends who can enter into our lives and offer their strengths where we’re weak, and we can offer the same in return. They aren’t doing the work for us, taking the next step in our place, but weaving in and out of our lives like a beautiful braid, creating strength and courage.

When you’re invested into the online world as much as I am – as much as we all are – it can be easy to forget what this looks like in our day-to-day lives. This Scripture doesn’t tell us to go build a platform of thousands. God isn’t telling us we need to go viral and have hundreds of strangers involved in our dream chasing. It says to find one – and then you can face whatever life throws at you. Find two and you can stand even stronger.

Three of you. A number that represents completion in Scripture. A representation of the Trinity. Who in your life can you invite on your God Sized Dream journey, to support you when you need strength, to cheer for you when you need encouragement, to be a safe place when you need rest? <– Click to Tweet

In my own walk toward a new God Sized Dream – one I’m walking toward in faith as I write these words because I can’t even name it just yet – God continues to put specific people in my life to hold up my arms when I can’t do it anymore. He’s asking me to go deep instead of wide with my community in this specific part of my life, to trust and confide in the women who have nothing to gain from walking with me. But they have exactly the right strengths to balance my weaknesses. They’ve walked a similar path. They’ve gone through a refining fire with me. They’ve seen God work on my heart and have loved me every step of the way.

These are the cheerleaders who will pick up the phone and pray over me when all I expected was a text message.

May we be dream builders and chasers who ask God to bring others into our lives, a community of three-strand ropes, to help us stand firm as we face life together.

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If you’d like to receive 31 free “praying for your community” printable cards, like the one pictured above, simply head here & sign up to receive blog posts from crystalstine.me!

Shared by: Crystal Stine

Photo credit: CreationSwap

Meet the New Sailors

July 18, 2014 By Christine Wright 15 Comments

Dreaming friends, we have exciting news today! As our vision of a God-sized dream website has grown, so has our team of writers. We are delighted to be adding six additional sailors to our team. We first met these dreamers in the same way the current team met – as part of Holley Gerth’s God-sized Dream Team. Each one of our new sailors is an inspiring God-sized dreamer. They step out and trust God in big and small ways and believe for the impossible. We know their words will encourage you to do the same! We just cannot wait for their posts to begin in August!

Crystal Stine is a full-time working mom, married to her high school sweetheart, with a cutie pie daughter! She is the Editorial and Marketing Manager at (in)courage. Oh, and her tweets will make you snort. Catch up with Crystal here: Website Twitter

Genny Heikka recently survived a BIG move to Idaho with her family! She’s a busy, brave mama, author, and speaker. Her latest book is Finding Mommy Bliss (Hello! Don’t we all want that?). You can connect with Genny here: Website, Twitter, Facebook

Kim Hyland is the founder of Winsome retreat for women and Five-Fifteen, which fights human sex trafficking, through corporate prayer. Kim is a mama to six, a mother-in-law to three and a grandma to one (awwwww!). You can find Kim here: Website, Facebook

Kristin Hill Taylor is a God-sized dreamer if ever there was one! She has been through the storms of life (infertility) and watched as God showed her the beauty on the other side. You can check out more of her story at her Website as well as connect with her on Twitter and Facebook

Laurie Wallin’s first book was just released and if there were prizes for best titles, “Why Your Weirdness is Wonderful” would surely win! Laurie is a life coach, speaker, wife, and mama as well as a writer. Catch up with Laurie here: Website, Twitter, Facebook

Melissa Aldrich is a photographer, wife and mama to three kids (all born within 25 months! Yes, there was a set of twins!). Her maternity and newborn photos are just gorgeous and she is living proof that no matter what is going on in your life, you always have time to dream. Find Melissa here: Website, Instagram, Facebook

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Full bios on each author can be found here.

Dream Big, Work Hard, Trust God

July 8, 2014 By Guest 8 Comments

On Tuesdays we are thrilled to fling open the doors to all of YOU! We love hearing your dreaming stories…the lessons you’ve learned, the roads you’ve walked, the dreams He’s planted in your hearts! Today we welcome Stephanie Schott to God-sized Dreams, and she has a God-sized story to tell…I know her words will bless you as she shares the journey to her dream!

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Have you ever wanted to change the world?

Maybe even just your world?

Has God tucked a dream deep down in your heart, but you feel like He has placed you in His waiting room…like the Lord wasn’t working fast enough? You’re wondering if your dream will ever come true?

Me too!

William Carey once said, “Attempt great things for God. Expect great things from God.”

And I did. I do. I’m attempting to reach a million moms for Christ because I believe if we reach the moms of this generation we can reach the heart of the next generation.

Crazy I know! But I’d rather attempt to do what He’s called me to than to let my life pass me by without at least trying. {===> Click to Tweet}

So, two years ago, I started The M.O.M. Initiative. It’s a ministry devoted to helping the body of Christ not only weave mentoring into the fabric of the church, but to help the church make mentoring missional. Part of that dream included an all-in-one book called The Making of a Mom which would work in tandem with this ministry dream.

The seed of the dream was tucked in deep in my heart when we lived on the mission field and I longed to reach young moms for Christ but couldn’t even speak their language.

Then, after moving back to Florida, I noticed a girl walk past my car. She was young in years but great with child, and my heart sank when she turned her head in my direction clinching a cigarette between her teeth. After asking the Lord why she didn’t understand how everything she did would now affect that sweet little life within, He answered me with a very loud yet, inaudible voice, “Because you’re not teaching her!”

That’s when the dream was conceived, and I decided I wanted to change the world. That’s when moms became my new mission field and The M.O.M. Initiative was created. That’s when the outline for The Making of a Mom was written. It was in such an unlikely place: in the parking lot of a gas station after watching a young pregnant teen walk by.

If you’re a mom, The Making of a Mom was written to meet you in the messy places of motherhood. To help lay a foundation for real life biblical motherhood and to help you embrace the truth that you are deeply treasured by God. That He sees you and He LOVES you… and that you weren’t meant to make this journey alone. I hope it helps answer the deep questions of a mom’s heart: “Am I enough?” “Will I ever get it right?” “How can I not mess up my kids when I’m such a mess?”

The heart of the dream the Lord placed in my heart was not only to minister to moms who know Christ, but to reach those who don’t. Our goal is to help the body of Christ begin mentor ministries within the church as well as to help them reach moms beyond the church’s four walls. But mentoring isn’t easy. It’s often awkward and hard to begin. So this book also sets out to answer the questions mentors and ministry leaders face when seeking to reach moms.

The ultimate goal of The M.O.M. Initiative is to impact 1,000,000 moms for Christ through the power of missional mentoring. And it really is possible! If only three moms in half of the churches in the United States would mentor three other mothers, that would translate into impacting over 1,000,000 moms for Christ and would result in over 2,500,000 children being influenced for Christ as a result.

I’d love for you to step out in this dream with me. Whether you are a mom with a heart for other moms or you lead women’s ministries, you can join us as we launch M.O.M. Groups everywhere and begin reaching moms through the power of mentoring.

As if that wasn’t big enough, I have to share how God showed up after 13 M.O.M.s from the team met together and prayed face down on a cabin floor in Colorado, and the Lord led us to launch our first conference. It’s called BETTER TOGETHER and it debuts July 31^st in Jacksonville, Florida! The Lord not only put the pieces of the ministry puzzle together, but He did exceedingly, abundantly above all I could ask or think when He connected the dots for our first conference. (He’s really good at exceedingly, abundantly, isn’t He?! 🙂 )

Perhaps the Lord has tucked a dream in your heart and you feel like you’re in God’s waiting room. I want to encourage you DREAM BIG, WORK HARD & TRUST GOD! He who has called you to it will see you through it. {===> Click to Tweet}

So, don’t lose heart. The Lord sees your hard work and He who began a good work in you will complete it. Dreams do come true…in His time.

Stephanie Shott is the founder of The M.O.M. Initiative, a ministry devoted to making mentoring intentionally missional. She is an author and a popular speaker who helps women live full, fearless and faithful lives. To find out more about The M.O.M. Initiative, begin a M.O.M. Mentor Group, or find out about the Better Together Conference, visit http://www.themominitiative.com/.

What You Can Learn From Frozen

April 23, 2014 By Gindi Vincent 6 Comments

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We are watching A LOT of Frozen at our house.

A LOT.

Four times the first week I mistakenly purchased the Frozen DVD at Target in order to prevent my daughter from ceasing to love me.

So I’m walking around my office singing, “Do you want to build a snowman?”

Yes, that is annoying. Even though I’m only doing it in my head.

One of the songs that I picked up during this torturous experience (you’d think the other two BOY triplets would demand a more measured movie watching experience, oh but no, they agree to this) was during a troll singfest. No, you can’t make this up. Little rocks turn into trolls and start singing. Aren’t you sad you don’t live with us?

We aren’t saying you can change him

‘Cause people don’t really change

We’re only saying that love’s a force that’s powerful and strange

People make bad choices if they’re mad or scared or stressed

But throw a little love their way, and you’ll bring out their best

True love brings out the best

Oh. I heart this line: people make bad choices if they’re mad or scared or stressed, but throw a little love their way, and you’ll bring out their best!

How. True.

Frozen may not be all bad. (But surely we don’t need to watch it four times a week, anyone with me?)

Here’s the thing. Sometimes, when you are pursuing what you love, things start happening. Big things. Crazy things. More than you could ask or imagine (Eph. 3:20). And as crazy as it sounds, when so much starts happening, you can get scared and stressed.

I know. I was scared. And stressed. This week.

You know what helps?

Throw a little love their way (that’s right, those trolls knew what they were singing about). I have many friends from this website, but two are like my soul sisters. I adore them. I talk to them four times a day.

So even in the midst of the blessings, I can sometimes freak out on them. (And they can freak out too, that’s why we’re soul sisters! That makes me think of another song. I’ll stop. Or you might never forgive me.)

They throw a little love my way. They actually throw gobs of love my way. And I do the same for them.

Suddenly, it brings out THE BEST! I feel refreshed. Encouraged. Blessed. Grateful.

So if you are feeling mad or scared or stressed, surround yourself with some folks (or trolls if you get desperate, you can find them in Frozen on your local Target aisles) that will throw a little love your way. (<- – – Click to Tweet) Develop those relationships. They don’t have to be family or best friends, but you, wonderful you, need a support system. A tribe as one of the sailors here puts it.

It will bring out your best.

Photo and lyrics courtesy of Disney.

Shared by Gindi Eckel Vincent.

Now What?

March 21, 2014 By Chelle Wilson 10 Comments

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
Proverbs 13:12 (ESV)

What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?
Author Unknown

You’ve confessed your dream–congratulations. If you are at all like the rest of us, now you’re a little bit terrified. That’s okay. God plants the dream, and He never leads you anywhere His Grace and Mercy are not waiting to meet you. So, as you prepare to take that first step, here is my encouragement to you…you can. Whatever you honestly desire to accomplish, assuming it is good, true, noble, right, pure, lovely, or admirable, according to Philippians 4:8, we are to think on those things. And after thinking on them, go do them. You can.

I spend so much time stressing, worrying about possible outcomes and contingency plans that eventually, I realize I’m wasting my time on the wrong stuff. He is able to keep us from falling. And that being so, what would we try, what might we accomplish, fully believing we could not fail? (<==== Click to tweet)

I gave myself a personal challenge recently…to stop lamenting about what’s wrong or what I don’t have, and instead take a moment to praise God for what is. It’s about perspective.

When you are stuck, when you are asking, “Now what?”, know that You Are Loved. Even on my worst days, when I struggle with both “how to” and “why should I”, I can list a praise.

I woke up this morning.

I was in my right mind.

I got dressed, and had clothes to wear.

I put on shoes.

I walked my dog, worshiping in the open air,

appreciating birdsong,

sunrise,

my silly doggy’s delight at simple things;

dew on the grass, new smells, new sights.

Simple discipline, but powerful, trust me. It’s confirmation of the still small voice, coming to me from the Universe, my Father God, ”You can.” I couldn’t be the only one frequently paralyzed by fear of falling short, failing, not quite making the grade. I couldn’t be. Why are we so afraid? We profess faith, do our best to pray and live our beliefs, but still we stand still, not stumbling, more afraid to move and possibly fall that remembering, He is able to keep us from falling….You can. Instead of asking or feeling “Now what??”, know that You Are Loved. Even on your worst days.You can. Really. What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail? Here’s a secret. You’d leave it all on the floor. It would be your Oscar, Tony, Emmy and Grammy performance, with an encore and two curtain calls. There’s more…another secret I learned though I often fail to draw upon it. If your failures do not kill you, they make you a little bit fearless.

So. today, there’s not a lot to it. Get ready…here’s the lesson. You can. Your fear is biggest when you fail to call it by its name. (<==== Click to tweet) Most of what you imagine will never happen. You could. You should. You can. You must.

Stop reading, and go do. You can. He is able to do more, with and through us, than we ask or imagine, because we are His, by virtue of “…His power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20). So, don’t be afraid anymore; I’m trying not to be, because He’s got this….He’s got our back. You cannot begin building your dream until you get moving. Proverbs teaches us that “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.” You’ve confessed your dream, congratulations. Now what? It’s time to get busy. Stay tuned…

Shared by: Chelle Wilson

Photo Credit: Nicolò Paternoster via Compfight cc

My God-Sized Dream Tribe

February 14, 2014 By Delonna Gibbs 39 Comments

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God-sized Dreams are meant to be shared with your tribe.

“My tribe? Really? I need a tribe?”

Yes, girl, you need a tribe for those days when you wonder if it’s all worth it.

Let me share with you how my tribe made a difference on my horrible, very bad, I-want-to-move-to-Australia kind of day.

I have been EXTREMELY blessed to have a marvelous group of women who I call my tribe. We met over a year ago as we trudged through the process of naming and following our dream.

We have laughed, cried, and shared our moments of frustration with our dreams.

And when we have felt our lowest, we have sent out a SMOKE SIGNAL and our tribe came running to see how they could help.

We often do not talk about spiritual warfare and God-sized Dreams. But the reality is when you are doing what God uniquely designed you to do, the enemy is not happy. There is going to be opposition and situations in your life that cause you to say,

“I’m tapping out of this dream God, it’s too much. I can’t do it.”

On this particular morning, I woke up thinking that everything was doomed. I had lost hope.

Normally when I wake up, a praise and worship song pops into my head. I start singing it (off key, of course), I check all of my social media feeds, grab a cup of coffee, and start hanging with God. I love prayer and just spending time with God.

Yet on this Wednesday morning, I woke up feeling blah. I couldn’t shake it. I wanted to stay in bed all day. I wanted to call out sick from work. I didn’t want to eat or drink anything.

I just didn’t want to face the day. I wanted to pull the covers over my head and sleep all day.

The blahs were taking over my morning, so I did the only thing I knew I could do. I called out to the tribe for prayer. I told them exactly how I was feeling and asked that they would just pray that I would snap out of it and remember God loves me.

The first Voxer message I received came from Christine. She spoke such sweet words of comfort to me. Christine put a name to what I was feeling. I was under attack because my post was going to touch someone’s life. My words would be encouragement for someone. And the enemy was upset. So I needed to get out of bed and go chase down the roaring lion. She reminded me that I was Lion Chaser.

Christine loves the book In the Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day by Mark Batterson. She often quotes it and I just chuckle every time because the book still remains on my nightstand in my must-read pile.

But Christine is right – I AM A LION CHASER. I am a daughter to the Lion Judah so who should I fear? <— Tweet this

The next Voxer message came from Kristin. She also told me I couldn’t let the enemy win; I had to get up and put on my sassy pants and go to work. She gave me lots of words of encouragement of how proud she was of all that I was doing. She reminded me that I was doing all of this for orphans, and that my obedience was bringing glory to God. Then my favorite part of the message came on…she told me that I needed to get up and put on my sassy pants even if they were dirty.

I needed to put on my dirty sassy pants.

Tears of laughter streamed down my face. I couldn’t stop. My heart was filled with joy.

Throughout the day, I received prayers and posts about how much God loved me. My tribe reminded me of who I was in Christ and who God created me to be. They reminded me that they had blah days too. They assured me that things would get better. My thoughts were no longer blah. I was smiling from the inside out.

A tribe is needed because they will point you back to Jesus and his love for you. <—-Tweet this

They remind you that your story is yours, unique to only you. No one can share your testimony but you.

A tribe reminds you of your unique footprint and how you are making a difference in the world by being the real you.

So yes, girl, you need a tribe if you are going to follow after your God-sized Dream.

Shared by: Delonna Gibbs

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We would love to be a part of your tribe! How can we pray for you?
Please leave a comment and the team will pray over each one.

How To Be A Buoy

December 27, 2013 By Mandy Mianecki 23 Comments

Four hundred and fifty bloggy women munched on bacon, biscuits, and scrambled eggs. Anti-human trafficking activist, Bianca Olthoff, took the stage as the morning keynote speaker for Allume. She won me over early with homeschooling humor, and then she got serious.

Bianca busted out a heavy-hitting dissection of the first half Ezekiel 37. You know, about the dry bones coming back to life?

She exhorted us to prophesy over the dead things in our lives, to allow God to unleash revival and refreshment…so that we may step into the role of freedom writers–so we can help breathe life into the desperation of others.

And then, in an impassioned tone, Bianca explained the feeling that God laid specific situations on her heart, to encourage women in the room that there is hope. That God is breathing life into theirs.

My breath ceased momentarily as she named two very specific situations with which I’ve been struggling.

This was a blogging conference. A Christian women’s blogging conference, yes. Yet, I sat in the midst of 450 women, not discussing SEO, driving traffic, maintaining schedules, and guest posting. No, God used a feisty Latina keynote speaker, to shout hope to me from a stage, to breathe life back into me and revive my spirit.

She spoke confirmation for things I hoped in private but rarely dared to speak.

And I wept.

Did I mention that 450 women filled the room?

Tissue after tissue. Tears and snot. Shoulders shaking.

Then Bianca spontaneously decided that we should stand and sing 10,000 Reasons, my daughter’s favorite song.

More waterworks. I felt two hands on my shoulders, and someone patting my back.

I was too embarrassed to turn around until the hands on my shoulders enveloped me in a giant hug. I sobbed into her shoulder as the song ended. Looking up, I saw it was a sweet God-sized dreaming sister and one of my roommates. More dream girls soon joined us, and I heard…

I knew she was talking about you!

I looked around to find you as soon as I heard that!

That was for you, girl. Definitely.

I surveyed the love in their faces and gave one of them a giant hug of my own.

Whereupon she broke out into the most beautiful spontaneous prayer about my worth and beauty and God’s love for me.

I was overwhelmed in the best possible way.

***

We don’t walk through this life alone, so it is no surprise that we don’t experience realized dreams alone either.

When God plants a dream in a heart, He grows a community around it, and we have only to receive it.

He knows our feet trudge through valleys as well as scaling mountains…and we need extra hands, hearts and voices for both. Our cheerleaders are God with skin on, and sometimes those relationships fulfill dreams in themselves.

True community has the power to heal. It is God pouring out His love in a tangible way, enabling us to fill up and spill over into the lives of others.

Buoying up their dreams.

And making Jesus smile.

***

How have you experienced true community?
How can you step out in support of someone’s dream?

Photo Credit: Mr. Thomas, Creative Commons