They say that some people live ninety years and others live one year ninety times. The difference is that those living their years to the fullest are living their dreams. People have called me lucky, but the truth is that I have learned to stop limiting God and to stop limiting myself. The truth is that you live the life of your dream lives once you stop limiting God.

Life has taught you to look at conditions to determine the opportunities and possibilities. The truth is that you don’t have the slightest idea of what’s possible, only what’s possible in your human state. But your heart knows. Call it intuition, imagination, or perception, the truth is that when you are able to envision your heart’s desire and the dreams that will bring you true happiness, you yearn. That yearning is the inner knowledge that you were made for more than a life of just getting by.

God speaks to me. He speaks to you, too. God is always speaking. Even in silence, God is speaking through His creation:

The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display His craftsmanship.
Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make Him known.
They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard.
Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world[1].

When you bring your values in alignment with His values, you will hear His voice. Perhaps not as a booming voice from Heaven, but certainly as an inner voice, a voice of guidance. This voice may not make sense to you at first, but it is there to help you recognize and nurture the thoughts that build your dreams.

Why would God help you build your dreams? Because when your values align with His values, He welcomes you as His collaborator. The things God does in this world, He mostly does through us. And when we’ve been broken, it makes us more beautiful and useful vessels, as in the story of the Broken Clay Pot:

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on an end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master’s house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water in his master’s house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do. After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream.

“I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you.”
“Why?” asked the bearer. “What are you ashamed of?”
“I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master’s house. Because of my flaws, you do all of this work, and you don’t get full value from your efforts.” the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and said, “As we return to the master’s house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path.” Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some. But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again the Pot apologized to the bearer for its failure.

The bearer said to the pot, “Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pots side? That’s because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you’ve watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master’s table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house.”

Each of us has our own unique flaws. We’re all cracked pots. But if we will allow it, the Lord will use our flaws to grace His Father’s table. In God’s great economy, nothing goes to waste. Don’t be afraid of your flaws.

Acknowledge them, and you too can be the cause of beauty. Know that in our weakness your strength is made perfect[2].

The underlying principle of dream building is this: The power that is within you is greater than anything that is in your surroundings. You and God are a formidable team. The power within you is greater than any circumstance in your life. The power that is within you is greater than your history.

The main thing that is holding you back is negative thoughts that will keep you from your dreams. But you can change your thoughts and use them in service of your dreams. Changing your thoughts to best build your dreams is a two-step process: First, you must release condition-based thinking. If your thoughts are always on what you don’t want to happen, you could inadvertently bring about those very circumstances. That’s exactly what happened to Job:

What I always feared has happened to me. What I dreaded has come true[3].

Another example is that if you want to lose weight by avoiding pizza, you’re going to find yourself more tempted than ever by pizza.

The second part of the process is to focus on what you do want to create, regardless of your conditions. Using the weight loss example, if you think about the delicious salad you’re going to have for dinner, then you look forward to that salad and do not think about the pizza that would thwart your efforts. This is true even if you work in a pizza parlor.

The truth is that you are the author of your own thoughts. The past does not dictate your future. All the power is in this moment: the NOW. Allow yourself to explore the possibilities of your dreams. Fill your mind with what you would like to be and do and create and give. Use your inner power in collaboration with God to write your future in a way that supports your dreams.

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[1] Psalm 19:1-4.

[2] 2 Corinthians 12:9.

[3] Job 3:25, emphasis mine.