To Dream The Possible Dream

INTRODUCTION

When I was young, one of my favorite tv programs was the Jim Nabor’s show. Jim Nabors played a young marine by the name of Gomer Pyle, a spin-off of the Andy Griffith

show. In this new program we watched the antics of the good natured, innocent but bumbling Gomer Pyle. It was a fun show to watch, though not what I would call high quality programming. That is, until the day I heard Jim Nabors sing. The young marine Gomer Pyle is discovered to possess a quality singing voice so he’s volunteered to compete against other marines. At the conclusion of the show he stands upon the stage and sings “to Dream the impossible Dream.” On that day I fell in love with that song. Do you recognize this song, it was written by Mitch Lee for the musical production of “Man of Lamoncha.’ In this story, the character Don Quihote is an elderly man who dreams of being a Knight traveling the land doing great acts of courage and chilvary, and so he does. The problem is that he has a tendency to mistake windmills for giants and bar maids for royalty. As far as those around him are concerned they see him as a fool who is missing a

few things upstairs and so they seek to bring him back to reality. This song, “to Dream the

Impossible Dream” is Don Quihota’s longing to see beyond reality, to see the unseen, to

touch the untouchable, to truly live.

To dream the impossible dream

To fight the unbeatable foe

To bear the unbearable sorrow

To run where the brave dare not go

To write the unwritable wrong

To be better by far than you are

To try when your arms are too weary

To reach the unreachable star

This is my quest, to follow that star

No matter how hopeless,

No matter how far

To fight for the right

Without question or pause

To be willing to march into hell

For a heavenly cause

And I know if I’ll only be true

To this glorious quest

That my heart will be peaceful and calm

When I’m laid to my rest

And the world would be better for this

That one man scorned and covered with scars

Still strove with his last ounce of courage

To reach the unreachable star

But all around us society is telling us to be practical, to use our commons sense, to stay with reality. For what star, they ask, could motivate us to dream impossible dreams. To fight the unbeatable foe. To bear the unbearable sorrow. Or to run where the brave dare not go. What star could do all that? And a star rose up in the East and wisemen came to King Herod saying, “Where is he who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East and have come to worship him.” In sending His son into the world God forever connected our common reality with the divine kingdom of the unseen. Through Christ’s death and resurrection God revealed to those who would believe in Christ a heavenly mystery hidden in ages past. In Colossians 1:24-27 Paul reveals this mystery,

“hidden for ages and generations but now made manifest to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

The hope of glory? What is Paul referring to? What is this glory? In Genesis 1 we read of how God created mankind in God’s own image. We were created to be like God, to reflect God’s glorious nature. What things do you hope for? What do you desire in your heart of hearts to have take place in your life? Financial security? A promotion at work? An increase in your salary? Good grades for your children? But then the problems set in: you over extend yourself financially, you’re laid off from work, your children have difficulty in school. Whatever it might be there is some group, corporation, program out there, claiming that they can help you get back on track, restore you, to where you once were before tragedy befell you. There are: money lenders; credit managers; job head hunters; programs to improve your children’s grades. You name it, it’s available, and they may even be able to do what they claim. There is just one problem, no human agency can restore your soul. When sin entered into the world that divine image in which God formed us was broken, it was damaged, was marred. “For all have sinned,” says Paul, “and fallen short of the glory of God.” But Christ came into the world to restore us to our original glory. To remold us in the image of our creator. To bestow upon us divine grace.