God of Dreams
When I heard the sound of trumpets boldly belting out a cheerful song, I turned around to see a parade marching down the street with flags, a big banner, and shiny brass tuba bells leading the procession. I never expected to see such a spectacle waltzing down the dirt roads of Pantasma, Nicaragua, but then again neither did the residents. It seemed like the whole city came out to see what was going on. It is not everyday that you have such a celebration as this!
I walked down the street and joined the celebratory crowd, following them to the grand opening of the new Casa Materna, or maternity house. Casa Maternas exist throughout Nicaragua to provide a safe place for pregnant women. At the Casa Maternas, women receive health care and education during their pregnancies. Often, the women come to the Casas from rural areas in the mountains where there are no hospitals. Many others come to find safety and shelter from unhealthy and threatening environments.
The Casa Maternas are supported by the government, but Mision Para Cristo also plays a significant role in the support and care of the women who come there. We go to simply show love to God's daughters, many of whom are in a desperate, broken, and hopeless time of their lives.
Today in Pantasma, the reason for the jubilant fiesta was the grand opening of a new Casa Materna. As I tapped my toes to the upbeat latino music, watched the pillars of pink balloons sway in the breeze, and observed the throngs of people gather to hear the speeches and see the new facility, my mind flashed back to a few years ago when I first went to Pantasma.
"One day, we hope to have a Casa Materna here," the missionary said as we passed a potential ground spot. Now, two years later, I celebrated the grand opening of that dream-come-true.
I also thought back to my first summer as an intern in Nicaragua. I was assigned the task of organizing and leading groups to serve at Casa Materna. Initially, I thought to myself, Come on! Just because I am a girl doesn't mean I have to do all the Casa Materna stuff. Give me a hammer so I can build houses or something! Despite my ridiculous attitude, I went to Casa Materna because I knew I needed to.
It didn't take but one trip for me to fall absolutely in love with it.
In fact, it was that summer and the experiences that I had at Casa Materna that sparked my desire to become an obstetrics nurse. Because of Casa Materna, I discovered my passion for women's health and how I can use that in my nursing career on the mission field. It is funny how God works in spite of my assumptions and attitude. What I thought I never wanted to do has become one of my dreams for the rest of my life.
A brief silence followed by the explosive first note of a new song brought me back to the present, standing at the door of the new Casa Materna, the symbol of the mission's dreams-come-true and my dreams-in-the-making.
I am coming to know God as the God of dreams. An unusual attribute, I know, but being at that new Casa Materna, I knew it to be true. I saw that God is faithful to keep His promises - to plant dreams in our hearts and bring them to completion.
In my heart also, He has planted a dream. It is a dream to love, to serve, to go. Maybe it will even involve giving nursing care to women in a most vulnerable, yet malleable point in their lives. It is during that time when they most need to hear the message and feel the love of Jesus Christ. But even if it is something entirely different and completely outside of my expectations, I know that God has given me not only a dream, but a calling to live a missionary life.
Right now, I am standing on the empty plot, knowing that God will make my dreams come true. In fact, I can already see ground being tilled and post holes being dug. Who knows what will happen in the next two years.
I encourage you with this: What are you dreaming?
When can you feel His heart beating within yours, communicating to you the depth of His passions and dreams? The way that His dreams and visions come true are through you and though us His people. He has given you a dream, and it comes from within His own heart. He has chosen to share it with you, and He will carry it to completion for His glory. Isn't this mystery absolutely incredible? The God of dreams knows the secret desires of your heart. He sees and knows your dreams because He put them there in the first place.
I walked down the street and joined the celebratory crowd, following them to the grand opening of the new Casa Materna, or maternity house. Casa Maternas exist throughout Nicaragua to provide a safe place for pregnant women. At the Casa Maternas, women receive health care and education during their pregnancies. Often, the women come to the Casas from rural areas in the mountains where there are no hospitals. Many others come to find safety and shelter from unhealthy and threatening environments.
The Casa Maternas are supported by the government, but Mision Para Cristo also plays a significant role in the support and care of the women who come there. We go to simply show love to God's daughters, many of whom are in a desperate, broken, and hopeless time of their lives.
Today in Pantasma, the reason for the jubilant fiesta was the grand opening of a new Casa Materna. As I tapped my toes to the upbeat latino music, watched the pillars of pink balloons sway in the breeze, and observed the throngs of people gather to hear the speeches and see the new facility, my mind flashed back to a few years ago when I first went to Pantasma.
"One day, we hope to have a Casa Materna here," the missionary said as we passed a potential ground spot. Now, two years later, I celebrated the grand opening of that dream-come-true.
I also thought back to my first summer as an intern in Nicaragua. I was assigned the task of organizing and leading groups to serve at Casa Materna. Initially, I thought to myself, Come on! Just because I am a girl doesn't mean I have to do all the Casa Materna stuff. Give me a hammer so I can build houses or something! Despite my ridiculous attitude, I went to Casa Materna because I knew I needed to.
It didn't take but one trip for me to fall absolutely in love with it.
In fact, it was that summer and the experiences that I had at Casa Materna that sparked my desire to become an obstetrics nurse. Because of Casa Materna, I discovered my passion for women's health and how I can use that in my nursing career on the mission field. It is funny how God works in spite of my assumptions and attitude. What I thought I never wanted to do has become one of my dreams for the rest of my life.
A brief silence followed by the explosive first note of a new song brought me back to the present, standing at the door of the new Casa Materna, the symbol of the mission's dreams-come-true and my dreams-in-the-making.
I am coming to know God as the God of dreams. An unusual attribute, I know, but being at that new Casa Materna, I knew it to be true. I saw that God is faithful to keep His promises - to plant dreams in our hearts and bring them to completion.
In my heart also, He has planted a dream. It is a dream to love, to serve, to go. Maybe it will even involve giving nursing care to women in a most vulnerable, yet malleable point in their lives. It is during that time when they most need to hear the message and feel the love of Jesus Christ. But even if it is something entirely different and completely outside of my expectations, I know that God has given me not only a dream, but a calling to live a missionary life.
Right now, I am standing on the empty plot, knowing that God will make my dreams come true. In fact, I can already see ground being tilled and post holes being dug. Who knows what will happen in the next two years.
I encourage you with this: What are you dreaming?
When can you feel His heart beating within yours, communicating to you the depth of His passions and dreams? The way that His dreams and visions come true are through you and though us His people. He has given you a dream, and it comes from within His own heart. He has chosen to share it with you, and He will carry it to completion for His glory. Isn't this mystery absolutely incredible? The God of dreams knows the secret desires of your heart. He sees and knows your dreams because He put them there in the first place.
Only God, the God of dreams, knows all of our hearts this intimately.
He is the one who plants dreams, which are really His own dreams, in each of our little hearts.
He is the one who loves us so much that He would entrust us with His passions and visions.
He is the one who empowers us to seek after those dreams with everything that we are.
And He is the only one who will ultimately bring those dreams to fulfillment.
He makes them come true.
All for His glory.
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