Daring to Dream

When is the last time that you dreamed? Told you we'd talk a little bit about an extension from the blessing of the children. Who? Me? Dream? I'm 40, 50, 60, 70 years of age. My life has passed. Why should I have a dream today? I'm going to tell you why in a few minutes, so please stay with me. Have you ever shared your dream with someone, if you do have a dream? I know sometimes my wife wakes up, and in the morning we'll have a cup of coffee, and she'll have a dream, and she'll share it with me. Maybe you do that with your mates or somebody else, but just not only what somebody has dreamt the night before as they wake up and share it, but maybe there's something burning inside of you, or a passion, or a goal that you have inside of you. Maybe you've shared that with your spouse, or maybe with your parents, or maybe with a good friend. But wonder if you decided to share your dream and there was a microphone in front of you. And as it were, the whole world were listening. I think many of us that know American history realized that happened almost 40 years ago with a gentleman that was on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and got up behind a microphone and said, I have a dream.

And that gentleman did have a dream. And it reminds all of us that sometimes a dream will cost you a lot. And ultimately, it cost that gentleman his life. He had a dream, but at least he had a dream, Martin Luther King. Let's bring it down to us that are in this room today.

Do you even have a dream to share that you care about, that you want to share? Let me stretch that question into another one to bring you into the message. Perhaps a more important question is simply this. Can you be a Christian and a dreamer at the same time? Or is that an oxymoron? Christian dreamer. To clarify that, allow me to define a few words for a moment to further bring us into the message. Allow me to define, first of all, what a dream is. A dream, out of Webster at least. This is how Webster dreamed. The first definition is it's a series of thoughts and images or emotions during the rapid eye movement state of sleep. The second definition goes like this. Something that is strongly desired or something that strongly satisfies that desire.

That's dream. Now allow me to define another word, the share word that I like to then couple with dream. And that is the word dare. D-A-R-E. Four letter word. To dare. What does dare mean? Let's define it. To dare means to have boldness or the courage to undertake an adventure. Let's put those two words together. Dare and dream. Dare to dream. And does a Christian have the ability and do you have the desire, whether you're on the front row when you're younger or you're in those mid-rows or back rows, and or in the back row of life with age, are you still daring to dream? For those of you that are note takers, whether you're here today or listening to this message later on, that will be the title of this message, Daring to Dream. There was a gentleman at the last part of the last century, talking about the late 1800s, and this was a gentleman that was a daring individual and he dared to dream. He'd been a sickly youth growing up in New York out of a rich Dutch family. He had had, I believe, consumption. As a young boy, had to go out west, kind of get those muscles in place, and get out there and have a love for the West and do some cattle rustling and some hunting. And later on, that man became one of the great dreamers and one of the great dares of American history. In fact, he's got his bust up there at the top of South Dakota in the Black Hills. His name was Theodore Roosevelt. He was a man that dared to dream. It's very interesting that, maybe some of you have been there before in Washington, D.C., that there's an island in the Potomac River that runs through the city, and on that island is the monument to Theodore Roosevelt. It's very interesting what this dreamer's advice is for all generations that would follow him. And it's simply this. Keep your eyes on the stars. In other words, have a dream. Look up and think big. Keep your eyes on the stars, but keep your feet on the ground. And it is with that that I'd like to talk to each and every one of you as Christian dreamers today. And, or let's move the word dream to a vision, perhaps, of being Christian dreamers that are daring and daring to dream dreams. All of us as young people have dreams. That's what sandboxes are good for. It allows you to have a... Or playing with dolls or playing kitchen with mommy or grandma. And you begin to kind of fancy or begin to apply what your life might be like. You begin to develop interest. I remember there was this little boy that was growing up in the 1950s. His name was Robbie. That's me, Robin. And I had all sorts of dreams. Early on, you know, typical kid in the mid-1950s, I had on my all-black outfit.

Black pants, black shirt, had the little black hat. I wanted to look just like Hopalong Cassidy. Some of you that are older will remember good old Hopalong. And I dreamt of being a cowboy. I also dreamt of being like Errol Flynn, being Robin Hood. I dreamt later on of other things. I dreamt of... I always had a love of history. About age five, I wanted to be an archaeologist because I was really into dinosaurs. And I dreamt of capturing one and measuring it all by myself. That is a dream... No, that might be a nightmare. Then, from being an archaeologist, I wanted to be, as I drifted from lizards to man, I wanted to be an anthropologist at age six. A lot of kids at age six don't even know what an anthropologist is, but that's what I wanted to be. And then I wanted to become a little bit more precise, and by about age nine, I wanted to be a paleontologist. One thing is that always centered around history and the study of man. I had a fascination for what was going on around me and why. When I came into the Church of God community as a young boy, I was about 12 years of age. I was up in the Long Beach Church at the time, and this gentleman that was just full of history in his mind came down to speak to us and just said all sorts of things that I had never heard before and just fascinated me. His name was Herman Hay. And here I was as a 12-year-old boy, and this gentleman gets up and just, shh! I said, I have a dream. One day I am going to be in that man's class, and I want to learn from him. About eight years later, I took two classes from him and had that pleasure and had that privilege. But I had a dream, and I set my course, and I wanted to be there, and I wanted to learn from that gentleman. I had a dream. Throughout my life, what I had always dreamt to be was basically to be a college professor of history. That's kind of where I really wanted to be. You know, have the nice cashmere sweater and just kind of be laid back and go into classes and teach and, no, not have the pipe because I don't smoke. But that would have been nice earlier on. But that, you know, just that atmosphere, that collegial learning environment of giving and taking and learning and sharing and peppering one another with thoughts and questions and considerations.

But that's what I dreamt. God had something else in mind. Now, it's very interesting with all of that spoken. I still deal with a lot of people, a lot of history, a lot of history that comes out of the Bible, and a lot of history that is yet to be. I deal with the study of man in a much unique fashion as a Christian minister, dealing with what's in people's heads and hearts rather than just simply what's in the ground. It's very interesting how God took that passion and that dream and that desire.

While it was a good desire, He molded it into His purpose. And I'm glad to be here before you today. But I'm not here to talk about me. I don't usually do that too much. That's too much for me. Let's talk about you. How about you? Because where have your dreams gone as people?

And what are you thinking about today of doing? All of us, in a sense, whether we are 21, 31, 41, 81, I don't see Mr. Taber here today, or to keep on going up, all of us to one degree or another are just simply this, friends. We are recycled teenagers. There is still that youth inside of us, that passion and that hope and that imagery that is yet out there for us to fulfill. A very basic question that I have for you is, whatever happened to your ability to dream dreams? You said, well, I thought this was just a day for the blessing of the children, because their life is all ahead of them. No, it's for this day is about the children of God, because all of us are the children of God, and there is yet something out there for each and every one of us. Allow me to make a statement. I think it's healthy to dream, and I think it's a vital key to living what we might call a life that will work in a very satisfying manner and ultimately one without any regrets. Daring to dream dreams is the key to a large life. Let's remember what Jesus Christ said in John 10 and verse 10. I have come that they might live, and live more abundantly.

What is that telling you and me in relationship to daring to dream dreams? Jesus is basically saying He came so that we not only exist, but that there is something happening that is worthwhile that we are developing into our incredible human potential. Daring to dream dreams is, if you want to jot this down if you're note takers, I put it this way, daring to dream, whether we're 21 or 71, is living a life with windows. I look out here right now and, you know, you can all turn around if you want to for a moment, but there's a big window, and we can see out. We see images, shapes, colors bursting at us. There's form, there's shape, there's substance. We see weight out there. We see light coming in, and our eyes are going out. Daring to dream dreams allows us to live a life with windows. Rather than just simply mirrors and seeing ourselves.

We need to go through those windows. Allow me to share a line from a poem by John Greenleaf Whittier. Maybe some of you have not heard about John Greenleaf Whittier since you were in American journalism. That's up in Los Angeles. We have a city called Whittier, and that's where it gets its name. John Greenleaf Whittier, famous poet of the 19th century, wrote a poem entitled, Maud Mueller. The poem talks about a relationship between a village maid and a city judge, one that could never be. And then in old age both look back. And now I recite the poetry. God pity them both, and pity us all, who vainly the dream of youth recall. For of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these it might have been. Daring to dream dreams and act upon them is very important. And a life with windows is critical, but you need to know how to open those windows and who is going to open up the windows for you. And there's a powerful case in mind. We're going to study another dreamer besides Martin Luther King. We're going to go back to the Bible. Join me if you would in Genesis, Genesis 37. Young man that had a dream.

I think many of us are acquainted with this gentleman, but we're going to get reacquainted. His name is Joseph. And in Genesis 37, verse 3, that proverbial microphone goes up in front of him. Now Israel loved Joseph more than all of his children because he was the son of his old age. And also he made him a tunic of many colors. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all of his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him. 3500 years later, some things do not change when the siblings think one of their own is the father or the mother's pet.

But things get rough, especially when the pet does something then. Now Joseph had a dream. There it is. He had a dream. And he told it to his brothers, and they hated him even more. So he said to them, Please hear this dream which I have dreamed. There we were, binding sheaves in the field, and then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright. And indeed your sheaves stood all around and noticed, bowed down to my sheaf. And his brothers said to him, Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us? So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words. Enough already, as we might say. You know, you kind of know when you just need to disappear and not say anything else, right? It's called common sense, which is the most uncommon thing in the world. So what does Joseph do? Then he dreams still another dream and told it to his brothers. And said, Look, I have dreamed another dream, and this time the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me. So he told it to his father and his brothers, and his father rebuked him and said to him, What is this dream that you have dreamed, shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you? And his brothers envied him, and his father, though, kept the matter in mind. And then the story unfolds. We recognize what happens. The brothers take him, and they sell the dreamer into captivity.

Now, what do we take away from this? Maybe you've never thought about it this way, and that's why we come back to church week in and week out to maybe learn something. Joseph did have a dream. Interestingly, the dream was all about him.

And when he shared it, at that age, at least, it was still all about him. Let's understand something. There was no mention of God, and there was no mention of success for others that would come into his life. What is interesting is this. To fast forward for a moment, you know, and I know that ultimately, and we'll get there in a few minutes, the dream stood. The dream was true. God gave Joseph enough to consider in the dream. But he didn't comprehend what it would take out of him, and or who would be added in that dream, and or ultimately who would orchestrate that dream of coming true.

Now, with that stated, how much time passed before his brothers ultimately bowed down to him in the land of Egypt, and that the dream became a reality. Basically, when we put the parts together, we recognize that Joseph was basically about 17 years of age when he dreamt the dream and spoke it. His brothers would sell him into slavery, and then he would spend time with the Egyptian household of Potiphar, and then he'd spend time in prison.

And then we find that he was about 30 before he was placed in charge of Pharaoh's kingdom, and the dream began to be a reality. Join me now in Genesis 41, just a few verses over.

Genesis 41 and verse 46. It says, as he ascended to being... allow me to use this term. The viceroy, I think we'll understand that, is the second underneath the king. As he became this viceroy of Egypt, verse 46, Joseph was 30 years old when he stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt.

And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh and went throughout all the land of Egypt. And this is where Pharaoh raised this Hebrew on high and said that other than me, other than me, all in Egypt will bow down to you. Interesting. That it would take that long. And notice that job description in verse 39. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, and as much as God has shown you all of this, there is no one as discerning and as wise as you.

And you shall be over my house, and all of my people shall be ruled according to your word. Only in regard to the throne will I be greater. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, See, I have set you over the land of Egypt. And it goes forth in talking about how people would bow down to Joseph.

So the dream of the dreamer came true. But there's a few more things that we need to understand here. Seemingly at an early age, God had given this young man enough to consider, but not the comprehension of... Let's jot these down like a cub reporter. He didn't understand the why. He didn't understand the how. And he didn't understand or include the who. That would ultimately bring this dream to pass.

With those thoughts in mind, who, what, why, and how, join me, if you would, in Genesis 45. In Genesis 45, let's begin to see as things come together here in Genesis 45. To see how the dream came true. This is where there had been a famine in the world, and the sons of the patriarch had come down to Egypt to gain favor and to be able to take food home. And then they meet this viceroy. They don't know who it is at the time. Then Joseph could not restrain himself, chapter 45, verse 1, before all those who stood by him.

And he cried out, Make everyone go out from me. So no one stood with him while Joseph made himself known as brothers. And he wept aloud, and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard it. And then, you've got to understand, that had to be something else, because in the Middle Eastern culture, people are very passionate.

They don't kind of cry like Westerners. They wail. And I think we've seen that at times on documentaries or whatever. It's not, you know, it's out there. And so you're hearing this all through the palace. And he wept aloud, and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard it. And they're thinking, What is going on? And then Joseph said to his brethren, I am Joseph.

Does my father still live? But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed in his presence. And Joseph said to his brethren, Please come near to me. So they came near. Then he said, I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt.

But now do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourself, because you sold me here. For God sent me before you to preserve life. Amazing. Fascinating. Somebody is now brought into the equation that was not there at age 17. The big who? God. God. That there was a purpose that was being worked out here below. And he sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

So now it was not you who sent me here, but God. And he made me a father to Pharaoh, and Lord of all of us house, and a ruler throughout all of the land of Egypt. Interesting.

There now becomes comprehension of what the dream was all about. And who was the figure that Joseph had not deemed to mention earlier on in his life? And we see in verse 8 that it's God. Join me over in Genesis 50. Fascinating here. Again, this is not just a one-time statement by Joseph. See, when you get the dream, you get the dream, and you understand it. Because what had happened is now Jacob the father had died, and it's just the rest of the family alone. And now that Dad is gone, now it's going to be payback time, right? Now he'll get us now that Jacob is gone. Notice what it says in Genesis 15, verse 18. Then his brothers also went in. And notice this about the dream. Remember what the dream said that those sheaves would fall down to his sheaf, right? Then his brothers also went and fell down before his face. They prostrated themselves, which is the oriental custom of that day. And they said, Behold, we are your servants. Joseph said to them, Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? But as for you, you men evil against me, but God meant it for good, in order to bring out it about as it was this day to save many people alive. There's an old expression that the poem that is read by the man of 20 reads differently when he is 80. When you've lived life, when you've gone from just simply considering to comprehending what your life is all about. With that said, though, let's go back to something that God implanted within this young gentleman known as Joseph. He planted a dream, and he planted a passion through all the ups and downs of his life. This earlier visionary dream, even though not fully understood, propelled Joseph through his life. If you go to Genesis 39, verses 1-6, and I'm not going to take you right there for sake of time. This is when he is put into the household of Potiphar, an official in the Egyptian government. That's where Potiphar's wife is lurking. And it says that he was a great slave. In fact, he was put above all of the servants. You see, when you have a dream, and when you have a goal, it's going to take you places, hopefully some good places, because it's an engine. It's a window that you walk through. It gives you a purpose for when you wake up in the morning. You have a life. You want to live. You want to do something. Your diligence about doing it, and Joseph was a very diligent slave. Later on, let's go to Genesis 39.21. We'll pick up that thought. Because his dream not only took him into a pit, but it also took him into a prison. Genesis 39, verse 21. Here's where he is in prison. Notice what happens. Again, because he had a dream. He had a vision. He had a goal. There was a drive inside of him. Not completely tempered towards God yet, but developing. That propelled him forward. Genesis 39.21. He's thrown into prison because of Potiphar's wife's lies about him. But the Lord was with Joseph and shown him mercy. And he gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph and all the prisoners who were in the prison. He kind of became the chief jail keep. He was the man. He was the guy. He had a dream. It gave him a goal. It gave him a purpose. It gave him stature. It gave him something to live for.

Interesting. But with all of this natural ability, here's the point I want to bring to you today, friends. And maybe somewhere where we're in our life right now, whether we're 21, 31, 41, or older, is to recognize this.

None of this really... He would have stayed basically where he was until this point, that he could acknowledge that he couldn't do it alone. Join me in Genesis 41. This is the turning point. And this is the great turning point throughout the Bible. There's a phrase that comes out of Luke 15, the story of the prodigal son. Remembering the prodigal son is a wash in the mud with the pigs? Because he's moved away from his father's house. And then it says one of the great lines of the Bible. And then he came to himself. And then he came to himself. Therein lies the great key to recognize it wasn't about him. And this is where Joseph came in Genesis 41 verse 16. It's where Pharaoh, now another dreamer, is having a dream. And he is not happy because he can't figure out the dream. And then notice what it says. So, verse 16, so Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying... No, let's go up to verse 15. Let's go back up. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. But I've heard instead of you that you can understand a dream to interpret it. Verse 16 now. So Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying... Notice this. This is a wow moment. It is not in me.

I don't have it. I don't have it. It's no longer just simply about me.

That's a stunning statement. And the statement that each and every one of us as Christians have got to come to. That we can't figure out life of and by ourselves. Our goals without God, our dreams without God, our visions without God, are only going to lead us into a dead end. It is not in me. God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.

The microphone was back on. He was not talking about his dream.

But he was talking about the one who reveals all visions, all dreams, and makes them happen. Again, let's go through this point. Because we're not only talking about Joseph's story, but I think you can see we're talking about your story and where we're headed. And our vision and our goal and our dream towards the kingdom of God, which is the ultimate. But we can do some dreaming on the way as well, as long as it fits in with that. What is interesting is that Joseph's dream never changed. What changed was Joseph. What changed was Joseph. How about us?

How much have we come to understand maybe our goals, our visions, our dreams? What we've wanted to do is maybe what we wanted to do, as we wanted to do it, how we wanted to do it. And we didn't budget room or time or space for God to have a part. And the part that he actively wants to play in our life.

I have a question for you.

What did we learn from Joseph? A. He had a passionate purpose that took him through life, all sorts of places. I want to jot this down a few. Joseph's story can be basically put into three words. He was in pits. He was in prisons. And he was in palaces. You know, it's kind of interesting. All three of those words begin with what letter? P. But boy, there's a lot of difference in those places. And when you have a goal, and if you have a right goal, or if you have a right dream, are you ready to hit the pits?

Are you ready to be squeezed into a prison?

And are you willing to recognize that God wants to give us good things as well?

Like a palace.

His passionate purpose had to be molded by personal pain and a lot of patience.

What are we aiming for right now? And only you can fit in the list. What's your dream? What's your goal? Are you willing to go through pain? And are you willing to be patient? Is whatever your dream is, whatever your goal is, whatever your vision is, whatever that engine is inside of you right now, is it coupled with God? Is it coupled with the Word of God? And is it worthy of all of your life's devotion? Because basically that is what it's going to take.

Matthew 6 and verse 33. Join me there for a moment. This is a sentinel Scripture for a Christian to consider in whatever we do. Whatever our dream is, whatever our vision, it's got to hook up to this Scripture. This is the big one. Matthew 6 and verse 33. Christians can dare, and they can dare to dream. And you can be a dreamer. And you can have a life of windows and looking out. But it all must be hooked up to this. But seek first the kingdom of God. Now notice something. And His righteousness. Oftentimes when we go to Matthew 6, 33, we look at the first part. It says, seek the kingdom of God. So what is the goal of a Christian? Seek the kingdom of God. That is not what the Scripture says in totality. It says, seek the kingdom of God. And notice, and His righteousness. The kingdom of God is a destination. It's out there. It's ahead of us. His righteousness shows us the way to travel. You don't get there if you don't travel, in that sense, in the correct manner. It's not just simply about an apple out here to reach for. You have to step up the ladder of the righteousness of God living within us. To be able to have that. When we do do that, it says, then all of these things, your dreams, your goals, your passions, it says, then and only then will those things be added to you. And that's neat. Remember what Teddy said? Theodore Roosevelt, keep your feet on the ground. Reach for those stars. When we seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness, that's keeping our feet to the fire. That's keeping our feet to the ground. That is anchoring us as we try to live and to exist in a life of windows that is a large life. And that's important.

One thing that we want to remember about, and I know some of us, and I'm just challenging some of us today, as I look out here to see some recycled teenagers that maybe think the best is behind them. I've written my story. I've done my thing. It's all behind me. I'm just kind of passing through now. Just kind of using up time.

Let's think that through for a moment. Let's understand that a very basic element of our Christian understanding is that it's never over. Let's remember that a Christian lives without any dead ends. Without any blockades. The essence of Christianity is to recognize when you go back to that when Jesus Christ was resurrected. That there is no stone too heavy and we are not sealed in. The resurrection itself reminds us and teaches us to live with a life of windows. That the best as a Christian is always ahead of us, even beyond death. Even to recognize that what you and I are doing as we seek the kingdom of God, as we abide in His righteousness, as we dare to dream our own dreams, much of this is going to be used in the wonderful world tomorrow. Not just to serve ourselves, but to serve others. Jesus Himself said that if you have been faithful over little, I'm going to grant you to be faithful over much. And that as we dare to dream dreams, to live a life with windows, to not give up because we're this age, that age, that age, this age, or this, this, this, and this, and this, to recognize that we are now being trained to be what? A kingdom of priests. You know, right now it's interesting that a new cabinet is starting to be selected for the next administration. Let's understand something. As Christians, we are now in the process of being trained and to be groomed for the wonderful world tomorrow to serve under Jesus Christ, a ruler, a leader that will never pass off the world stage.

And He loves people that want to live a life with windows. Three things I want to share with you so that you can dare to dream dreams. Number one, don't limit yourself because of age. Whether you're too young or too old, both will get you. I'm too young. Like Jeremiah, I'm too young to die. I'm only 17. I don't want to be a prophet. You will be a prophet. You will go and speak my words, but they won't like me. Do not look at their faces. Do not look at their mean eyes. You go and speak the word of the Lord. So we tend to do that. On the other hand, we can say, well, you know, we're too old.

For those of you, all of us recycled teenagers that are in this room. Let's think of something here. Are you with me? Let's start counting. This is fun. How old was Abram when God came to him and said, guess what? You're my man. I am going to do something with you. Do you know how old Abram was? 75. Who's under 75 in this room? And some of you probably thought your life was passed you by. Abram's was just starting. In fact, he got a new name out of it later on.

How old was Moses when God said, come up here. I got a job for you. How old was Moses? Mr. Jacobs got the answer. He was 80, but I'm retired. I've been a prince of Egypt. My name is Mirmashoi Kinkari. At least that's what Joseph has called me. I conquered Ethiopia. And you know what? I've kind of been a country gentleman for 40 years. I've been doing the shepherding thing. 80 years of age. God said, you're going to put all that now that you've been doing, how to marshal people and how to fetch sheep and get them to go in the same direction. I've got a new job for you. How many of you like to start a new hobby, like boat building? How old was Noah when God called Noah not only to be a preacher of righteousness, but a boat builder? I know the answer is just going to come right off your lips. Pardon? No, not that. 480. Pretty good, Kevin. 480 years of age. Some of us say, I'm just kind of waiting till it's all over. I'm done. I'm tired of dreaming. I don't think God's going to use me anymore. I'm just kind of, I'll keep on coming to church, keep on kind of reading the Word, kind of maybe every third week get inspired if it's a good sermon.

Putting in my time. You know there's a beautiful story. I'm going to give you some homework. Luke 2. Story of Simeon and Anna. Old folk. That at the end of their life, the best was there that they were able to meet the Christ Child with Joseph and Mary as they came up at the Feast of Dedication. There's always something out there, friends. God is never done with us. God is still wanting us to dare dreams. To think big, to live a life with windows. Let me give you another one. Age will get to us. Here's another one. Don't be put off because maybe your dream and or you, the dreamer, is different or unique. As long as it fits into the overall goal of Matthew 6.33, you go for your dream. As long as it is towards God, glorifies God, benefits you, serves others. Let me put this in whatever your dream might be. Treasure your uniqueness. May I share a story with you for just a moment about uniqueness? Wouldn't you like to be a fly on the wall when the foreman of a jury is at the door giving the lunch order to the bailiff? You know that the jury is going to be in there for a long time when you hear the order come out. Eleven cheeseburgers and one hot dog.

Eleven coffees and one hot chocolate. Eleven fruit pies and one prune Danish. You realize that the guy that's doing the ones is an individual who doesn't suffer fools or folly and knows what they are about.

Don't let your age contain your dream. As long as it's attached to Matthew 6.33. Don't allow your uniqueness, your personality to thwart your dream. And one more thing that I'd like to share with you.

And this is important as I have shared this message with you today. Share your dream with one another. Share your dreams. I've just talked about vision and dreaming and goals today. And I can see some of you starting to light up today now. I see something happening out there. Just because we've talked about sharing dreams. When you share your dream, not like Joseph did in the beginning. Don't go there. Especially if you're by a pit. But when you're sharing your dream for all the right reasons. Because it's going to glorify God. It's going to serve others. And it's going to allow you to develop. To be prepared for God to use at a future time. Share your dream. Because I want to tell you something. When you begin to share dreams, it becomes contagious. What do I mean by contagious? Have you ever been in a class or right here in San Diego, but in a church? Especially when the sermon starts to get long, like right now? I've just got one more verse to share here. And somebody yawns. It's a crowd killer. Everybody all starts yawning. Or...

Monkey see? Monkey do? Everybody's got lice. Everybody's going. It's contagious. As contagious as a yawn is, as contagious as scratching an itch is. When you share something special inside of you, and you show people that you are living a life with windows and not just simply mirrors, it is spiritually, rightfully contagious. Let's go to point. Join me if you would. Let's conclude by going to Psalm 18.

Hope you're beginning to think big out there. To recognize that there's something yet ahead of you. Psalm 18. And this is important because this will allow all of us to keep our feet on the ground.

Psalm 18. And we're going to pick up the thought in verse 32. Even as God establishes our thinking and we honor Him and recognize that it's not just simply about us, but it is about Him. And as we commit our dreams to Him, let's understand something about when we dream. He's not going to take all of the bugs out, just like He didn't take the pits and the prisons out. That's why whatever you're doing, whatever your dream, attached to Matthew 6.33, you always want to make sure that it is worthy of all of your life's devotion because that's what it's going to take. The encouraging thing is that God wants us to give us the strength. For who is God? Verse 31. Accept the Lord, and who is a rock? Accept our God. It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, and He sets me up on the high places. He teaches my hands to make war so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. Verse 35. You have also given me the shield of your salvation. Your right hand has held me up, and your gentleness has made me great. Then notice verse 36, please. And you have enlarged my path under me so that my feet do not slip. God does promise to strengthen us, but He does not promise, friends, to remove all the obstacles along the way. Let's just think about this in your vision, your dream, your goal, your life of windows. If our God gave us no rough roads to walk, no mountains to climb, and no battles to fight, just like Joseph, we wouldn't grow.

The best news that I can share with you as we conclude this message is, just like Joseph, God is not going to abandon us. When He begins to work with us, He is going to see it through. My encouragement to each and every one of you is to dare to dream as Christians. But let's make sure of why we dream, who we bring into our dream, what that dream is for, and who it is for. That means for others besides yourself. And most importantly, who is the big who? The great God. It has given us that ability to dream, to attach ourselves to seeking the kingdom, and having a life, a life of windows, so that when it's all said and done, unlike our friend, Ms. Mueller, of 150 years ago, we don't look back, and we don't regret. Because a Christian always looks forward. A Christian is always optimistic. A Christian always remembers and recognizes that just as what happened on that day, that there is no stone too heavy. That our God is there for us. Therefore, friends, let's dare to dream.