God is a firework. There is a popular song that says you’re a firework. While this can be true, to create a pop of explosion in your life, imagine teaming up with the original fireworks Creator. As we enjoy this Fourth of July holiday, inviting family and friends over to watch the fireworks, have we invited God into our show?
The show I’m talking about is the dream God has put on our lives. Yes, God is our Protector, our Redeemer, and our Warrior, but He won’t be any of those things without an invitation from us.
He is also a polite God. While there’s no place in the Bible that defines His name this way, He shows us through stories that He doesn’t push His way into our lives. He gently invites us into the story He has created for each of our lives, but it’s up to us if we want to participate in the story.
For many years, I pushed away my story. Literally and figuratively. I moved in the opposite direction of choosing a creative career. I’ve had characters running around in my daydreams for years, decades even, who are dying to get out on paper. However, I’ve also bought into the lies from the enemy that I’m not enough, there isn’t enough time in the day to work on my dreams or even if my dreams of being a full time writer, blogger, coach and speaker come to pass, there won’t be enough to pay the bills, especially health insurance. So, I told the characters in my head to be quiet and I sat on the sidelines of my dreams for years before I felt a tug so strong it could no longer be ignored.
I went to God in prayer and asked Him to take the torment of my dream. I didn’t want it anymore. It was too painful to not see it fulfilled year after year. It was like scraping a wound open on my soul every time I heard a story hit the market similar to mine or worse, I went to the library and saw a book published with the same title I had in my head for years.
I stared at the bookshelf unable to move either away from the book or pick it up. I eventually picked it up and flipped through it. While it was a different story altogether than the one I’m writing, it strengthened my prayer for God to take away my dream. Why? Because I saw all the letters after the author’s name and the awards already received which qualified this person more than me to share their writing talent with the world.
The old lie was being whispered to my heart, what do you have to offer? What does your story have that could be better than this one already sitting on the shelf?
In that moment, I didn’t have an answer. But, then, in the blink of an eye, instead of God taking away my dream, He made my desire to see it happen even stronger. In Ephesians 6:10, (NIV) it says, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.” I grabbed onto His strength to start working on my dream.
After this reawakening, God also did amazing things. He opened up unexpected chunks of time for me to write. For example, as I write this, I’m sitting in a campsite in Moab, Utah. The rest of my family is sound asleep after an early morning hike to the Delicate Arch. I took a short nap and feel fully refreshed, writing to my heart’s content as I listen to the gentle snores of my four other family members.
These are the times when I feel the fireworks of God. I released this dream to Him, to the point of asking Him to take it away. Instead, He created a burst of energy and opportunity to build on what I’ve already defined as my dream from Him. These are the fireworks of God. The lies of the enemy try to extinguish them, but God shows up even bigger when we invite Him into the building of the fireworks show.
Is there something you need to team up with God to create your own fireworks show? Share it in the comments below so we can pray for you.