Adventures WorldRace SethBarnes Sponsorship Giving

| by archiveworldraceblogs

 

God has been teaching me a lot lately about my dreams vs. His dreams for me. This story, the Pearl Necklace, helps illustrate what He has been showing me. This is a somewhat long blog, so bear with me J – this is what has been on my heart for the last couple weeks.
 
(This is just a summary, for the complete story go to:  http://www.motivateus.com/stories/pearls.htm ) 

A little girl, Jenny, was at the checkout stand with her mother, when she saw them- a foil box with little white pearls in them. She asked her mom if she could have them and her mom checked the price and saw that it was almost $2. Her mother told her that she could earn the money to buy these pearls. So Jenny asked people for money and did extra chores around the house and finally earned the money to buy them. This little girl wore them everywhere and never wanted to take them off.

Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night when she was ready for bed, he would stop whatever he was doing and come upstairs to read her a story. One night when he finished the story, he asked Jenny,

“Do you love me?”

“Oh yes, Daddy. You know that I love you.”

 

“Then give me your pearls.”

“Oh, Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have Princess–the white horse from my collection. The one with the pink tail. Remember, Daddy? The one you gave me. She’s my favorite.”

“That’s okay, Honey. Daddy loves you. Good night.” And he brushed her cheek with a kiss.

About a week later,, Jenny’s daddy asked again,

 “Do you love me?”

                 “Daddy, you know I love you.”
“Then give me your pearls.”

 

“Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my babydoll. The one I got for my birthday. She is so beautiful and I love her so much.”

“That’s okay. Sleep well. God bless you, little one. Daddy loves you.” And as always, he brushed her cheek with a gentle kiss.

 A few nights later when her daddy came in, Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed Indian-style. As he came close, he noticed her chin was trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek.

“What is it, Jenny? What’s the matter?”

 Jenny didn’t say anything but lifted her little hand up to her daddy. And when she opened it, there was her little pearl necklace. With a little quiver, she finally said,

 “Here, Daddy. It’s for you.”

With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny’s kind daddy reached out with one hand to take the dime-store necklace, and with the other hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of genuine pearls and gave them to Jenny.

He had them all the time. He was just waiting for her to give up the dime-store stuff so he could give her genuine treasure.
 

While we were at debrief in Nicaragua, right before we left for Thailand, Andi and Ms. Patti spoke about little girl dreams and the dreams God has for us. So many times, we hold on to our little girl dreams (like the cheap pearl necklace) and never let go. God is calling us to a higher level of dreaming and has bigger dreams and a bigger destiny (like the real pearl necklace) for us than we have for ourselves but we have to choose in. If we say no to God, He will find someone else- we have to choose our dreams or God’s dreams! Are we willing to give up our little girl dreams to walk into what God is dreaming for us?

This really hit me and had me thinking for a while. What are my little girl dreams that I am holding on to? The ones I can think of off the top of my head are what every little girl dreams of- to have your knight in shining armor come and rescue you, to get married, to be a mom. I felt God saying to me
“Janna, do you love Me?”

                                “Of course I do God”

“Do you love Me?”

                                “With all my heart.”

“Give Me your dreams and let Me dream for you! “

                                   “My dreams? Not my dreams.”
“I am asking for your dreams because I have so much more in store for you. What you are dreaming of is only a small part of what I want to give you and I cannot give it to you if you are still holding on to your dreams. Trust Me.”

 

                “But my dreams . . ?”

“Why is it so hard for you to give up your dreams for what I have planned and dreamed for you? My dreams are bigger than you could ever have imagined and even though they may not turn out how you expected them to, they will be a million times better !”

                “What happens if my little girl dreams never happen? Will I ever get married or have kids?”

“Don’t you trust Me? Your dreams are safe in My hands and all that I have for you is the best that there ever will be. You are only able to focus on the small part of My dream and while My dream may include marriage for you, it is only a small part of it. There is so much more to what I have planned for your life than just marriage. My dream for you may look different than what you may want them to and My timing may be different than yours, but will you choose My dreams over yours? Are you willing to surrender your little girl dreams for My dreams? You have to make the choice, but know that whatever you decide, My love for you will not change!”

 I did not have to think very long about this and said YES to God and am giving up my little girl dreams for

God’s dreams. I may have no idea what these dreams may look like, or where they may take me, or what my future holds, but I do know that I am in my Father’s hands and there is no other place I would rather be!   So adios little girl dreams and hello to God’s dreams!

 Even though I have no clue right now what these dreams will look like, I can trust in His heart and know that nothing- not any of my dreams or what anyone else could come up with, can compare with His!