Number 10:  December 4, 2005

Here today, gone to Maui. This was a familiar saying to me throughout my life. Growing up in the cold and snowy Indiana side of Chicago, when the scientists were screaming about global cooling, there were two warm places advertised that I marked as future destinations; spring training and Hawaii. Both became important goals to accomplish. Places to get out of the miserable cold. Nothing like going to a warm climate when your home area is encased in Tundra-type weather. They were just dreams back then. How do you turn dreams into reality?

In March of 2001, another baseball aficionado and myself got into a car and headed south to Tucson. Since I now live in Colorado, and my team, the world-champion Chicago White Sox has spring training in Arizona, the dream became a reality. Twelve hours later we were out of the cold enjoying the warm air of the desert. It would only be for four days, but one of my life-long goals was accomplished. Taking the necessary action brought it into fruition. It had moved from the dream or goal stage, to the gathering of information stage, to the plausibility stage, to the action phase, and the goal became a reality. If all we did was talk, it would still be a dream.

This week would be the realization of the other warm weather goal—Hawaii. Two years ago my family was offered an opportunity to go to Hawaii. What could you say? In November of 2004 a week was picked. This week turned out to be the coldest week in 8 years in Colorado, but we were not there, having accepted the offer to bask in warm, sunny, lush, green, exotic Maui.

Goals and dreams, what you really want in life, are available if you take proper action toward receiving them. Sitting around just dreaming and talking, without any action, does not get the goal accomplished. If you think you are not worthy to receive good things in life, or that your life is mapped out already and only “by luck” can good things occur, you may be limiting God and God’s ability to work within you. We are God’s children, He wants the best for us.

Psalm 24:1:

The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

II Corinthians 9:8:

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.

Jesus Christ made available a more than abundant life, a spiritual life, a life that could be enjoyed; not a downtrodden life full of misery and anguish. What kind of saviour would do that!    

John 10:10b:

…I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Don’t limit God. Develop your ability to set and achieve goals. Take control of your life and stand for the one true God, Who is a kind Father that wants to give you the best.