In Passionate Pursuit of Dreams
Over the past month our CultivateHer team has been on a passionate pursuit to champion other women leaders to dream big dreams for their lives. In the month of February we heard the powerful testimony of Lisa’s journey who lost her dream as a child but as an adult fought to get it back. This month we continue to uncover what each of our Dream Anatomies looks like.
One of the greatest obstacles to pursuing our dreams is SILENCE! As women (or even worse women leaders) we seem predisposed to treat each other with a spirit of competiveness rather than a spirit of encouragement. So its no wonder we keep our dreams to ourselves! But by keeping our dreams locked away from others our dreams tend to fade.
“The most dangerous thing you can do is keep your dream to yourself. If it only exists as an idea written on these pages, it will wind up buried by the demands of life. You will have to work at it. You will have to be vulnerable and share it. You will have to entrust it to someone else to hold you to pursuing it.” ~ Jenni Catron
My friend Randy Elrod recently put this quote on twitter “Most close friends will walk with you thru sorrow, but only your true & closest friends will celebrate your victories WITH YOU.” This year I have made myself extremely vulnerable with trusted friends by sharing my dreams. It was a defining moment for me to see them “celebrate my victory’s” and although it wasn’t easy it was totally worth it.
So who are the champions in your life; the people that support you, encourage you and believe in you? Have you shared your dreams with them? If not, I challenge you to today to share your dreams! Will there be friends who will show their true colors of competiveness rather than encouragement? YES… but I believe that just like Lisa if you continue to fight your way back to your dreams by being vulnerable with others to cheer you along the way… THE SKY’S THE LIMIT! So get dreaming!!
PS – Don’t forget to register for our March event.
The champions in my life? My parents. My sister. My boss. My friends.
I am working on sharing my dreams. I have been working on a series of blog posts called Drafting Blueprints so I can put my dreams out there. By putting my dreams into words, I am helping myself understand and prioritize them. Also, other people know how they can step in and help.
I struggle with the competition thing too. I often find myself coveting what others have. I think it is primal. I say that not to excuse it, but to bring light to it to keep it from festering.
Lindsey…
Thank you for being so honest! It is one of my favorite things about you. You're not honest just to lay it out there but honest so that you can learn and grow. When I talk with other women they are either in one of two camps. The competitive camp as you talked about or the safe camp. The safe camp allows you to chase a little part of your dream that is manageable while protecting you from having to face those in the competitive camp. I think its so important to recognize which camp you belong to in order to learn how to positivly respond and champion other women leaders dreams regardless of which camp they are in.
Can't wait to read your "Drafting Blueprints" series!
What a great post!!! Thanks for the encouragment. Well, for me I am blessed to have many champions in my life. With my family, friends, my ministry Board of Directors who support and encourage me in all areas of my life. I think my my sister-in-law who raised me and I are growing closer everyday. We talk on the phone (for free) at LEAST once a day, maybe two or three (depends on the day). i am SO greatful for the Godly women she is. She is not just family but one of my best friends. I also have dear precious friends who I don’t talk to daily, it could be once a month or year. However no time or distance matters. I think for me it is having that common relationship of Jesus that brings those ties together. I would hope those friends would think the same, which I encourage and believe in them. While many of my friendships look different and often I feel that I am not on the same page in life with them. In the majority of my close friendships these women are married with children. I often feel that there is less competition in these relationships. I know that sounds strange, but to me it is true.
Cont…
The older I grow I find that I need all types of friendships and POSTIVE & Godly women in my “core” friendships. I think when it comes to dreaming that I didn’t know who I was, and therefore I didn’t dream. God is doing a mighty work in my life and I am dreaming and living. I am embracing my life and where I am at and God is blessing me all over. I think when you begin to dream that is in alignment with God’s plan for your life, it becomes a catalyst for everything.
Last night I shared some of my dreams with my husband…but even in my safe relationship with him I felt vulerable & exposed telling him some of the secrets that have been growing in my heart.
I definitely feel competitive towards others, but I’m trying to squelch that in my heart. I truly want to rejoice with others instead of saying, “Why not me, Lord.”
I recently read a post by @prodigaljohn about the desert road. It helped me to think that instead of deferring those things I desire because I’ve messed up, God is taking me on a longer path to prepare me because He loves me.
Does any of this rambling make sense?
I have a dream. It is huge – too big for me to accomplish. It will take the partnership of several groups or organizations for it to be successful, which means they would all have to believe in the dream. It's a scary position to be in.
I woke up this morning with one thing on my heart and mind – that I need to tell a certain person about this dream. Then I saw the tweets about this post, read the post, and knew that I could not push it aside or back down.
I shared a dream for the first time last night with my small group girls. Its been on my heart for over a year but i was afraid to say it out loud. Im so gladI did and i cant wait to go after it! Love you, Great post!
Trish – this is such a great challenge. Thank you for challenging us to start talking about our dreams!
The champions in my life? My parents. My sister. My boss. My friends.
I am working on sharing my dreams. I have been working on a series of blog posts called Drafting Blueprints so I can put my dreams out there. By putting my dreams into words, I am helping myself understand and prioritize them. Also, other people know how they can step in and help.
I struggle with the competition thing too. I often find myself coveting what others have. I think it is primal. I say that not to excuse it, but to bring light to it to keep it from festering.
What a great post!!! Thanks for the encouragment. Well, for me I am blessed to have many champions in my life. With my family, friends, my ministry Board of Directors who support and encourage me in all areas of my life. I think my my sister-in-law who raised me and I are growing closer everyday. We talk on the phone (for free) at LEAST once a day, maybe two or three (depends on the day). i am SO greatful for the Godly women she is. She is not just family but one of my best friends. I also have dear precious friends who I don’t talk to daily, it could be once a month or year. However no time or distance matters. I think for me it is having that common relationship of Jesus that brings those ties together. I would hope those friends would think the same, which I encourage and believe in them. While many of my friendships look different and often I feel that I am not on the same page in life with them. In the majority of my close friendships these women are married with children. I often feel that there is less competition in these relationships. I know that sounds strange, but to me it is true.
What a great post!!! Thanks for the encouragment. Well, for me I am blessed to have many champions in my life. With my family, friends, my ministry Board of Directors who support and encourage me in all areas of my life. I think my my sister-in-law who raised me and I are growing closer everyday. We talk on the phone (for free) at LEAST once a day, maybe two or three (depends on the day). i am SO greatful for the Godly women she is. She is not just family but one of my best friends. I also have dear precious friends who I don’t talk to daily, it could be once a month or year. However no time or distance matters. I think for me it is having that common relationship of Jesus that brings those ties together. I would hope those friends would think the same, which I encourage and believe in them. While many of my friendships look different and often I feel that I am not on the same page in life with them. In the majority of my close friendships these women are married with children. I often feel that there is less competition in these relationships. I know that sounds strange, but to me it is true.