Pursuing Your Dream
CBC’s new theme for 2025 is “Arise & Build” from Nehemiah 2:20a, “The God of Heaven will prosper us, therefore we His servants will arise and build.”
Pastor Paul begins the month of January with the topic of “Pursuing Your Dream”. Pastor encouraged us to start the new year with God’s dream. Many of us may dream but we need to learn which dreams are from God. When we receive a dream, pray and ask God for the direction and on what to do. We are here by design. We all have a specific purpose, a specific plan, a specific calling, a specific assignment while we are transiting on this earth. You will receive heavenly dreams in such a way that you can apply God’s wisdom in the things that you are doing right now that will bring impact in the heavenly realms because God is anointing you in a deeper way.
Pursue your dream! The enemy wants to make people believe their past determines their present, but it is actually their future that shapes their present. You are going through challenges not because of where you have been but because of where you are going. Your setback is just a set-up for the greatest comeback in your life. Based on the stories of the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Joseph) and other men and women from the Bible, they not only faced setbacks but many had to wait a long time until the promises were fulfilled. It seems that the longer the promises are, the greatest the impact it makes. Keep on dreaming! The bigger the devil you face, the bigger the future you have. Prosperity has a purpose to it.
You have to grow into your dream. The dream will not automatically happen, you must grow into it like we see Joseph did. Joseph received the dreams when he was 17 years old, where it remained in seed form. He was afflicted for 13 years prior to the fulfillment of those dreams (Genesis 37). Joseph was in Egypt but Egypt was not in him—instead, he transformed Egypt. The enemy has been trying to steal your God-given dreams. It does not matter what circumstances you find yourself in, those are just facts. The word “fact” in Latin is “factum” which means made, or made up, but dreams are God-given, so when you receive revelation from God, no matter what facts you are facing, those things will not shake you. The question is, do you still believe in the dream that God gave you?
We need to realize that at the core of every dream that God gives us, it is about loving God and loving those that God calls us to serve. The dream given is always bigger than ourselves. For example, Joseph had to love Potiphar even though he was slandered and then he had serve and love the prison guard and yet Joseph kept his eyes on his future. The next level is to grow into his dream by loving Pharoah. The fourth one is that he had to forgive and love his brothers who sold, betrayed, and rejected his dreams. Like Joseph, we also have to go through many testings before we are ready for those dreams to come to pass. Let us keep our eyes on the promises.
Pastor prayed Psalms 126 over the congregation: “When the Lord brought back his exiles to Jerusalem, it was like a dream! We were filled with laughter, and we sang for joy. And the other nations said, What amazing things the Lord has done for them.” Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us! What joy! Restore our fortunes, Lord, as streams renew the desert. Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy. They weep as they go to plant their seed, but they sing as they return with the harvest.”
Acts 2:17-18 “And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. And on My menservants and on My maidservants, I will pour out My Spirit in those days; and they shall prophesy.”
Week 1: Dreams and Their Significance
In the midst of the global shaking, the stability of the Kingdom of God and the mandate cannot be revoked.
If you do not have a dream, it is not too late to discover one.
Restoring your God-given dream. (Psalm 126:1-6)
Having a big-enough dream is significant that the facts do not count.
The importance of understanding cycles and seasons in God's redemptive history.
Prayer Points:
Do you have a dream? If you do, pray for direction to move towards accomplishing your dream. If you do not have a dream yet, pray for the Lord to give you one.
Is there anything that hinders you from accomplishing the dreams that God gave you? Pray for God to reveal the obstacles that hinder you from accomplishing your dream and for wisdom and strategies on how to overcome those obstacles.
Pray for revelation to understand the significance of your dreams in this season of your life and/or in the bigger context of your state and nation.
Week 2: The Power of Dreams and Overcoming Obstacles
The power of dreams and the importance of sharing them to like-minded people even if others do not understand.
The importance of not giving up on God and the significance of dreams in overcoming obstacles.
Joseph's dream lived on despite being rejected by his brothers and being sold into slavery.
Having a dream and the role of the father in covering and protecting the child.
What is your personal dream and your dream for the next generation?
Prayer Points:
Pray for God to give you a sphere of like-minded people to share your dreams and to whom you can be accountable to.
Pray for God to refresh and renew your dreams that have gone to dormancy due to challenges, obstacles, failures.
Pray for strength, courage, perseverance, tenacity, and discipline to pursue your God-given dreams.
Pray that as you pursue your dreams, God will also use you to mentor others with similar dreams.
If you are a parent, pray that God will give you the sensitivity to see God’s dreams in your children’s lives and to help nurture them.
Dreams from God are often bigger than ourselves. Pray for Holy Spirit to reveal how your dreams can impact others.
Week 3: Unlocking Your Dream
Knowing God is a big God, remove different kinds of limitations. (Psalm 78:41-42)
Magnify the dream, vision, and God’s promises in your life; do not magnify problems (Numbers 13:28-33).
Have the right attitude, an unwavering faith, a vanguard spirit.
Pulling down strongholds of limitations: financial limitations, human impossibilities, satanic attacks, relational conflicts, sexual immorality, religious deception. (2 Corinthians 10:3-5, 2 Chronicles 26:5).
Prayer Points:
Pray for increased faith to pursue your God-given dreams.
Pray for Holy Spirit to check your heart and to put your heart and dreams into the proper alignment with God’s heart.
Pray for open doors and provisions to move towards your dreams. Pray for God to help you overcome the challenges you might encounter in pursuing your dreams.
Pray to overcome discouragement and frustration that you might have experienced so far due to the delay in the fulfillment of your dreams.
Pray for Holy Spirit to help you focus on God rather than the challenges you encountered while working to fulfill your dreams.
Week 4: The Fulfillment of Your Dream
Joseph's journey from being sold into slavery to becoming a powerful figure in Egypt.
Joseph's dream was not just about him but about delivering his family and nation.
The importance of forgiveness and understanding that dreams are not just for personal gain but for others.
God will fulfill His promises. He is a covenant-making God and a covenant-keeping God.
Prayer Points:
Pray for revelation on how your dreams fit in the grand scheme of things and how it impacts others in your family and communities.
Pray for Holy Spirit to reveal ungodly things in your life that might hinder the manifestation of your dreams. Pray for an obedient heart to change and re-align everything with His Word.
If you have been discouraged due to unfulfilled dreams, pray for God to renew and motivate you again just as He did for Joseph.
Pray for God to bring your dreams into perfect alignment with His timing and His purpose.
