Most of you are probably familiar with the concept of “life planning”. There are many courses available that cater to this strong demand, especially among the younger generation. They are full of aspirations for the future, hoping not only to “get ahead of the starting line” but also to grasp sufficient information and skills to plan for and establish a better future and a perfect life. This is reasonable and also a hallmark of those who are idealistic.
Why is the concept of “life planning” so attractive and so motivating that people will implement it regardless of the cost? For example, some people, having got off after a day of hard work, continue to study tirelessly to obtain certain degrees, qualifications, professional certifications, or licenses, etc. The biggest driving force behind all this is that they are all chasing dreams, dreams that require planning to be realized, dreams that fascinate them.
Dreams have no age limit; every “living” person needs to have dreams. Those without dreams and direction in life can only be said to be surviving, not truly “living.”
Dreams can be divided into two levels: one for oneself and one for others. One cannot live solely for oneself, so pursuing dreams for oneself is of a lower level.
Since the “Christian spirit” is about living for others, it is naturally the direction every Christian should embrace. And Christ’s dream should also be our dream.
What is “Christ’s dream”? Christ’s dream is the highest level of dreams. He looks after our personal good and the good of others.
In terms of fulfilling each of our own good, Jesus hopes that we can receive and preserve the salvation He freely gives us. In terms of fulfilling others, Jesus hopes that through our response and participation, the Good News of salvation He has given us will be widely spread, so that the greatest number of people can benefit from it together with us.
And through everyone’s participation, Jesus hopes that we can all sanctify ourselves, so that we can gradually become like God and restore ourselves to the way we were created. When all of us can become more and more like God, we can forever be in communion with the perfect God and fulfill the Heavenly Father’s ultimate dream, which is to be united with His beloved children forever and enjoy eternal happiness!
From the moment we were born, what lies before us is a road to “return to our Father’s house”. This path will not only fulfill God’s dream, but also fulfill our own dreams. The more closely our dreams match God’s dreams, the smoother our journey “back to the Father’s house” will be.
And God’s dream is to ultimately achieve unity between Himself and His people through the ultimate relationship He has with us, a marital relationship in which each person would become selfless for each other, and is willing to offer up oneself completely to the other person.
This is the dream we should strive for throughout our lives!
Our life on earth is like a drop of water in a vast ocean compared to our eternal life. If we are willing to spend our whole life making “life plans” for our transient life on earth, shouldn’t we start investing more time and effort as early as possible to plan for our eternal life?
Reflection
How did you make a “life plan” for your life? Have you taken the time to make similar plans for your eternal life? Why?
What is your life’s dream? Is this dream about yourself or others? Have you dreamed about your eternal life?
Now I invite you to come before God and ask Him to give you a Kingdom dream and give you direction to start planning for it.
Today’s Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank You for inviting me to examine my own perspective today, making me realize that I have been short-sighted and self-centered, failing to include You and the others You love in my dreams.
Thank You for giving me Your vision today, allowing me to begin to understand Your dreams and the differences between Your dreams and mine.
Please instill in me a humble heart and fill me with Your spirit, so that I may gradually make Your dreams my own and spend time planning for my eternal life, for our future together, and for our ultimate relationship.
You are invited to visit the YouTube channel, where all participants are encouraged to join and share their reflections.
Fundraising Appeal
Thank you for participating in this 40-day Lenten spiritual journey, Finding God in All Things. We hope you have been inspired and have benefitted from it! For the spiritual benefit of all of you, Fountain of Love and Life devotes a lot of time and effort in producing various spiritual projects every year, and all our ministries are sustained by the generous donations of our supporters. We hope you will support us with prayers and donations. Please make an online donation using the button at the top of the website Lent.FLL.cc. Thank you very much for your support. God bless!
The following is the “Farmer of Hearts: Finding God in All Things” team, including FLL staff and volunteers.
Please kindly pray for them. May God protect them and sustain their physical, mental and spiritual well-being.
Project Manager: Michael Lam
Writer: Paul Yeung
Editors: Bonny Chan, Rosa Tse
English Editors: Bonny Chan, Paul Yeung
Mandarin Editor: Anthony X.
Cantonese Narrator: Margaret Woo
English Narrator: Bonny Chan
Mandarin Narrator: Mel Lo
Audio Editors: Fonte Ip, Sander Lee, Margaret Woo
YouTube Editors: Fonte Ip, Sander Lee, Arnold Chan
Graphics: Francis Lai, Rosa Tse
Website: Patricia Young, Angela Wong
Podcast: Angela Wong
Social Media: Yollie Leung, Carmen Tsang, Rosa Tse
Theme Music:
“Friends Only” by Introvert Pianist https://www.youtube.com/@introvertpianist
“Watercolor Lilies” by Aaron Kenny https://youtube.com/@contactkennya