From Dream to Reality

We all have dreams. No, not just the kind that you have when you are sleeping and don't remember when you wake up. Real dreams. The big and scary. The "what if" dreams of life. And the kind that you always hope will become a reality. 

For my 12 year old son, his dream is to be an NBA player. My 10 year old daughter dreams of owning her own horse (and dog) farm. And my 6 year old, well, he wants to be a ninja warrior and a pilot. Time will tell if these become a reality. And in the in-between, I will continue to encourage them to pursue these dreams, work for them, and ultimately, hand them over to God, the One who has 'plans to prosper them and not to harm them'. (Jeremiah 29:11)

All I ever wanted was to be a wife and a mom...thanks to the beautiful example of my mama. Along the way, I also found my passion for nurturing and caring for others and became a nurse. And in more recent years, my nursing background has intersected with my passion for health and wellness through nutrition and prevention. My Juice Plus+ business has brought a whole new realm to me living into who God made me to be! Through it all, being a wife and mom has become my day to day reality and takes priority over all things. What a responsibility God has given me! And if your family is anything like mine, your husband counts as one of your children! So really, I have 4 kids and a dog. I am abundantly blessed and thank God for the role He has given me in this busy season of life! But Lord, help us all.... There are days that I wish I could go back and change the way I reacted, spoke or dealt with my family. I know I am not alone.

Enter the dream. My husband is a successful real estate agent, has worked incredibly hard for 18 years to provide for our family and allow us to have experiences and memories that will never be taken for granted. But with the hard work comes off-hours, nearly incessant cell phone use, the burden of being at his clients' beckon call and a desire to make everyone happy. Don't get me wrong--he has done a phenomenal job at being present for his children and me...but the stress of juggling it all takes a toll over the years. He desires healthier work habits. He desires to be more fully present when he is with his family. He desires to be the man that God created him to be. 

We've dreamed about how to slow down, how to savor the moments more, how to not allow the stress take over in the day-to-day. We've dreamed about taking a family adventure while our kids are still young. But dreaming about it and talking about don't get you very far. So we are taking a step of faith and putting that dream into action. We are pulling out of town for a while. For 6 months. To Hawaii. With a 6 hour time difference. And we leave in 1 week. His incredible team will hold down the real estate fort. We will have an adventure with our children that will be a lifelong memory. They will go to school on the island. And be in a different culture. The hope is that we enter back into the Richmond scene refreshed, renewed and with a new pace of life. A paradise pace.

Though our situation and dream is a bit extreme, most of us all have something tugging in our souls. Something that we desire (or dream about) that we feel may help us live more full and free in this chaotic world. So what is tugging at you? Are you really spending your days the way that you want to be? This is YOUR life and you actually have a choice in how you live it. God has blessed you with this 1 (extended) season on earth. You don't need tons of money. You don't need an exotic destination. You don't need more things to prick your heart's desire. You simply need to be still... and consider what you are passionate about. If time or money wasn't an issue, what would your life look like? Psalm 37:4 says "Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." God knows the desires of your heart...do you?

If you'd like to follow along on our Hawaiian sabaatical...while we are hangin' in Hawaii, kickin' it in Kailua, and learning a new pace of paradise, please subscribe!

Molly