Chasing Your Dream – Are You Up For The Challenge?

Three years ago I had the privilege of meeting Phil Vischer, the creator of VeggieTales, and hearing him speak at a writers conference. I purchased his new book, Me, Myself & Bob and took it home to read.

It took me nearly a year to get the courage to read the book. You see, I learned that I was quite similar to Phil in a lot of ways. I knew God wanted me to learn from Phil’s mistakes.

The book is about how Big Idea Productions, the producers of VeggieTales, grew into a huge company, and then fell apart 12 years later. He explained how crushed he was that God didn’t come to the rescue and save his beloved company from the lawsuit that forced them into bankruptcy. What he ultimately learned was that his dream had become more important to him than anything – including God.

We can’t let our dream become our identity.

Phil says in his book that it’s not about the destination – it’s about the journey. Achieving the dream is supposed to be hard. If it was easy, what would we learn? How would we grow? Phil states that walking with God, spending time with Him often, should be our primary focus. Not the dream. We’re God’s representatives, and people are watching. He wants to change us and make us better.

One song I’ve found very inspiring is “The Climb”. We have to keep our head held high. Sometimes we’ll lose and sometimes we’ll make mistakes. We keep going and stay strong. It’s not about how fast we go or what’s on the other side of the mountain – it’s about the climb. We have to stay positive and learn as we go. We can’t grow selfish or stingy, but must continue to think of others.

In the end, as long as you don’t let your dream consume your life, you’ll be a whole different person. Stronger. Smarter.

That’s why achieving the dream is so hard – to make you a better person.

Are you up for the challenge?