Don't Idolize Your Dream | Why We Need to Remain Content in the Present Season

I am living in an abundance of answered prayers. I don't say this to brag, but to testify of the Lord's goodness and kindness in my life. He has come through for me in areas that I have been longing for, and I am so thankful to see how He is moving.

Yet despite all of this, I find myself longing for the next season. My desire to be a wife and to be married consumes me sometimes, so much so that I forget the blessings all around me. It feels so close yet so far, and I get so caught up in dreaming about the one day that I miss what's right in front of me.

And oh my, how the Lord has been so gently convicting me of this.

My college years are so short (shorter than even the average), and they really do go by so fast. I don't want to miss the season I'm in because I'm idolizing and clinging to a future season. It will come, and I'm confident it will be good, but so is the present. I have a priceless gift of building a village around me, doing life with girls who love the Lord and doing ministry with Christian Challenge. I'm going to school to prepare myself for a job that I'm excited to pursue, and God has graciously provided for me my own apartment to live and host in.

I wholeheartedly believe that God has put dreams and desires in our heart for a reason (at least those that honor Him). I know so many girls who desire to be married and become a mom more than anything else in the world, and that's a desire the Lord has put on their heart for a purpose. The same is for those who dream of being a teacher, a nurse, or an accountant, or for the desire to have friendships or to mentor a younger girl. God has given us gifts and talents for a reason, and He will use us when those seasons and situations arise. But for right now, we have to be surrendered to the context and circumstances that He wants to use us in currently. We have to be content with trusting that God will take care of the "one day" on our hearts, and walk obediently through whatever He's calling us to do now.

Romans 7:13 says that the law uses what is good to bring about our death. We can take a really good thing (like marriage, or a job or a friendship), and turn it into something deadly if we idolize and fixate on it. We have to hold these good things loosely and surrendered, and resist the urge to allow it to become our whole world. God wants to give us good gifts, but those gifts will quickly become sour if we steal the joy from it by fixating on it before it's even time to receive the gifts.

In this season of learning to be content with what God has given me right now, prayer is everything. I'm working on talking to the Lord often and honestly about how I'm feeling, giving Him the desires of my heart and asking Him to show me what He wants me to focus on in this season. I talk to Him about my dreams, and in a way, even just telling Him about it helps me let go of some of the control and obsession that I can cling to. I let Him in on what's on my mind, and that brings so much peace.

It's also been really helpful for me to remember the purpose of this season. Of course, there's so much the Lord is doing in and through me while I'm in college, but He's also preparing me for marriage and the seasons to come. When I create space to ask the Lord what specifically He's preparing in me or in Koa and I, I'm reminded of how meaningful this time is. It's not wasted, and it's not for nothing - there's real work happening (even if it feels behind the scenes), and that's so encouraging. I want to be on the lookout for how I can partner with God in preparing my heart and working to mold my life to look more like Him, instead of fixating on the season I wish I was in.

No matter what the season you're waiting for is, I know that God has such good plans for you right here. You don't have to wait for that season to experience His blessing, provision, or presence - you can experience that right now. He is working deeply in your heart and around you, and you can partner with Him in that work. Continue remembering the answered prayers you're walking in right now, praise Him for that, and trust that this season is just as meaningful as all the other seasons.

What are you doing to prevent idolizing a future season? What is the Lord teaching you while you wait for the desires of your heart? Let me know in the comments below; I'd love to learn from you and alongside you!