How To Keep Your Dreams Alive

I Kings 18:43-45 - He said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go back” seven times. It came about at the seventh time, that he said, “Behold, a cloud as small as a man’s hand is coming up from the sea.” And he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, so that the heavy shower does not stop you.’ ” In a little while the sky grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy shower.  NASU

• Keep Believing In What No One Else Sees 

Having people not believe in your dreams is a commonplace experience. In our text above Elijah had a vision or a dream where the Word of the Lord came to him.

In this vision God had told him that it was going to rain:  1 Kings 18:1- Now it happened after many days that the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, "Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth." NASU
 
Now, no one else knew it was going to rain. Everyone had been programmed to believe it wasn't going to rain because it hadn't rained in over three years.
 
In verse 41, Elijah could hear and see a storm coming.
 
While Elijah was on Mt. Carmel he knows a storm is coming but only he is able to see and hear it. He says to his servant (vs.43) “go…look towards the sea.” The servant does as Elijah said, but when he returns he informs him he saw nothing.

They go through this ritual six times and each time his answer is the same, “There is nothing.” Imagine going through this same routine six times and coming back with the same answer, “There is nothing.”
 
Elijah’s servant was not able to see what Elijah saw.

God said (vs.1) that He was sending rain and Elijah believed him and he could see the rain coming. He didn’t see it physically but he saw it spiritually. 

• Seeing What No One Else Sees 

Quite a few of my Pump Up readers are college coaches. They, many times, are able to see their athletes as champions, but the problem is others can’t see it.
 
So what are you to do when you can see what no one else can see?

You keep on displaying your faith in what you believe.
 
At least that is what Elijah did and on the seventh time, his servant came back with a different answer, a "don’t get your hopes up too high" answer. He says, “Behold, a cloud as small as a man’s hand…”

The servant doesn’t have much faith in this little cloud. In fact, he says it is a “small” cloud. It is only the size of a man’s hand.

Now if you think about that for a moment, physically speaking, that size of a cloud isn’t going to do much.

That is what makes this story all the more fascinating. 

• God's Accomplishments 

God uses this small cloud to rain down heavy showers (vs. 45- In a little while the sky grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy shower.).  
 
You might have a vision or a dream and you have shared it with your family or friends and they all think you are “crazy” or worse yet: they even call you a “dreamer”.

All I can say is keep believing or having faith in your dreams. This is how to keep your dreams alive. Elijah did and in the end, he was right and they were wrong.
 
You may be the small cloud and God is going to do great things with you. Don't stop believing you are partnering with God.
 
Think On This:
 
Small minds are the first to criticize large ideas.

Stay Pumped,
 
Gary A. Serago
 
Minister of God's Word