It’s difficult for me to watch some 22 year old pop sensation or millionaire actor talk about how “dreams really do come true!” I wonder, what “trials and tribulations” could they have possibly been through, at their young age. I turn 53 years old this weekend, and with the exception of releasing my first book in September 2018, none of my artistic dreams have come true.
That’s just the green-eyed monster trying to rear his ugly head. Who am I to say what success others have or have not earned? All I can do is keep following my dreams and never give up.
Beyond just the “artistic” dreams, God has given me a handful of spiritual visions, but not one of those have come to fruition, either. I’ve held on to these dreams for years, decades even, and there are days when I am ready to give up.
But the Lord won’t let me quit. I have to believe God will make these dreams come true. I tell myself that neither me nor the world is ready for my dreams to be unfurled, so I just keep trying.
I’m a dreamer; always have been, always will be. Speaking of, check out this cool Bible verse:
“Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11)
I love that! God has “planted eternity in the human heart.” I have always taken this to represent the part of our spirit which dares to dream about something beyond today. We keep reaching for the stars because God has implanted the desire in our heart.
God created dreamers. Without us, we’d still be stuck in the stone age.
Since I was a kid I dreamt of being on stage, in a band. I tried out for the lead singer position of a local group when I was in my early 20s, and got the job, but we split up a few months later and nothing ever happened. A few years later (and I’ve written about this before), a coworker of mine and I began recording a hard rock demo. We were six songs into the process when life threw my buddy a curveball and he quit.
So just like that (insert snapping of fingers), it was over. I was so distraught, but that still, small voice of the Holy Spirit kept whispering:
My son, Trey, grew up listening to our demo, and now is in a band of his own, Sacred Throne. Musically, they are so far beyond anything I could’ve ever done, and it makes me so happy.
Fast forward to Summer, 2019:
The guys in Sacred Throne preformed their first gig at the Chains Unchained Festival in Aurora, Missouri.
And, to be honest, and this is NOT just because I’m the drummer’s father, the guys KILLED it. Everyone in attendance said so. We had a couple of boxes of t-shirts, which, realistically, we didn’t expect to sell. By the beginning of the second day, however, we had sold out.
Crazy.
The performance was also recorded, and while the boys never planned to release it to the public, due to all this COVID-19 madness, they changed their collective mind.
Thus, “Live at Chains Unchained 2019” by Sacred Throne is now available on Spotify, Amazon Music, iTunes and several other music outlets. They started recording their first album a couple months ago, but due to the album being put on hold, the live EP has been released.
In the meantime, they keep practicing, keep growing, keep writing and keep praying.
Turns out what I thought were my dreams are now coming true through my children.
I have to say “children” instead of just “son” because I’m so proud of my daughter, Jessica, as well. She’s a nurse at Mercy Hospital, working in the Oncology Department. Not content with standing still, however, and as amazing as her current work is, she recently went BACK to school to become a teacher. She wants to both teach and be a nurse, and she’s so amazingly brilliant, she can pretty much do whatever she puts her mind to.
But here’s the really kooky part of this whole thing:
My and my buddy’s “band” for the demo recording was dubbed “Hallow Road.” Making music was pretty much a dream that was, as they say, “dead in the water.” All of a sudden, however, God has resurrected Hallow Road, and without me even seeking it out, the Lord is bringing a band together, mainly comprised of older dudes like me who are interested in just getting together, chilling out, jamming and having fun. And if we can reach a few people for Jesus along the way, all the better.
We were getting ready to start practicing when the coronavirus quarantines started, but we’re not letting that deter us. It may delay us for a bit, but it can’t stop us. Nothing can stop us unless we let it.
Dreaming will keep you alive and hungry, especially during crazy times like this, when many of us are trapped in our homes for days on end.
Never stop dreaming. If your dreams are God-sent, never give up; they WILL come true, even if it takes 30 years (as it is in my case).
Broken People 