Sermon Central
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Wear The Dream Series
Contributed by Lance Bane on Nov 7, 2001 (message contributor)
Summary: This message encourages young people to put into action the dreams that God has put into their hearts.
Former President Woodrow Wilson once said, “We grow by dreams. All big individuals are dreamers. They see things in the soft haze of a spring day,or in the red fire on a long winter’s evening. Some of us let those great dreams die, but others nourish and protect them; nourish them through bad days until they bring them to the sunshine and light which comes always to those who sincerely hope that their dreams come true.”
In this week of “Dreamworks” we are discussing the angle of “Wearing the Dream”. This is the week that carries the underlying theme of “Just do it.” Phil Knight began a company in 1972 because he was not satisfied with the current status of athletic shoes. Because of his dissatisfaction we have today an athletic shoe phenomenon called, NIKE. In Principle, dissatisfaction gives birth to great dreams. If life were great at it’s current state and could not be better, then their would be no use for dreaming or dreamers. God looks at the state of our culture today and places a demand on us for dreaming. It is time for you to “Wear the Dream”. History is laced with men and women who have had dreams, not superficial dreams, but dreams that have found their place in reality. Someone once said, “Yesterday is like a cancelled check. Tomorrow is a promissory note. Today is like ready cash. Use it wisely, for today is the most precious possession you can have.”
I believe every young person hear tonight can wear the dream by applying ideas found in our story tonight.
Idea #1: Returned to Camp (vs. 15)
Once Gideon learned that God had given him the Midianites and their camp he worshipped, but then he returned to camp. Gideon, returned to let others know that they were getting ready to see the fulfillment of God’s dream for Israel. To receive a dream and try to achieve it by yourself is the conception of failure. God gives us dreams and expects us to return to a place where our dreams can be owned by others. In returning to camp what you are saying is that I am ready to return to that place where I will find what I need to make my dreams come true. You find three comforts in the “camp”. They are:
1. Comfort of Relationship
“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be over powered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” Ecclesiastes 4.9-12
2. Comfort of Resources (love, encouragement)
“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.”
3. Comfort of Refreshing
“Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water.”
Ex 15:27-16:1
To wear the dream and begin to make it happen you must return to camp and receive the comforts of the camp.
A woman was heartbroken when her dog disappeared. She put an ad in the paper offering a reward for its return. The next morning the phone rang. It was the voice of a woman: I’m calling about your dog." Then she began to cough. She explained she wasn’t feeling too well. In fact, she hadn’t felt well for three years since her husband had died. She went on to say that after her mother and father had passed away, that recently her sister had contracted cancer and was undergoing painful treatments. Her friends weren’t doing well, either. She gave details of their various illnesses and went on to describe the funerals of several of them. After thirty minutes of this, the woman who had lost the dog tried to get the caller back on the subject. She asked, "But what about my dog?" The other woman replied, "Oh, I don’t have him, but I thought you might be feeling badly about losing it, so I thought I’d just call to cheer you up!"
