From The Rectory
I
recently went to an excellent event, which shall remain nameless, where the
many children present were told to follow their dreams. There was lots of “you’re
all very special and marvellous” and “you can do anything you really want to
do. Never give up!” You know the kind of thing.
And
there is much in it, of course. I am all for being positive. There is a danger
that we crush ambition. Perhaps as Brits we love to chop down a tall poppy. We
fear anyone getting above themselves and being too big for their boots. So,
yes, think big, kids! Dare to dream! Seek to fulfil all your marvellous potential.
But from a Christian perspective we might say at least five quick things.
(1)
You are very wonderful and special
You
are not just a wet chemical machine or a higher ape. In fact, you are made in
the image of God. As such you are so so so loved. You are unique and brilliant
and almost infinite in your depths and potential. You are almost like a god.
Wow to you, times one million!
(2)
But you are also weak
and wicked
You
are a fallen, broken god. You are so vulnerable and needy. Self-sufficiency is
a dangerous illusion. But it is more than that. You don’t just mess up. There
is bad as well as good in you. Some of your motives are crooked and… You have
done and said and thought things you shouldn’t have done and failed to do
things you should have done. And sometimes quite deliberately and knowingly. You
are both more loved than you could dream but also more wicked than you really
know or care to admit.
(3)
You should raise your sights and aim high
Yes,
dream! C. S. Lewis once said that our problem is that we settle. Our dreams are
not too big but too small. We are like kids making mud pies in a slum. We have
not imagined what the beach might be like!
(4)
But you should not stop
at aiming for fame and fortune – you should look even Higher!
Follow
your dreams, but not just selfishly. Could you actually do good for others and
for the world as well as doing what you really want to do? Sometimes you should
do things you don’t want to do.
And
your ultimate aim should be the glory of God. Your goal, your hope, is God
Himself and his New Creation. Inventing a cure for cancer or the longer lasting
lightbulb, by itself, would be too small a thing! You need a really big
picture. The biggest. God. You are to know and love him. Don’t settle for anything
less than the eternal and infinite. That is what you really really want and
that for which you were made. Anything else will disappoint.
(5)
And ultimately all this
will be sheer gift, not just hard graft
It
is not, “try really really hard and you can do whatever you want”. Some of your
dreams will fail.
But
you can know God and be known by him. You can serve his kingdom and purposes
and make a wonderful difference of eternal significance. Seek first his kingdom
and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. But aim for
anything less and you ultimately lose it all.
And
all this is not because you’re so fab on your own. God made you. If you are a believer,
he saved you in Christ. He empowers you. He will get you to glory. It is all
gift – all the way down. So, receive his love and mercy. It is from that
position of grace (“You are my child whom I love”, God says to you) that you
are to take on the world. And in Jesus you can be sure of victory. Enjoy the
adventure!
The Revd Marc Lloyd
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