Prior to 2020, my husband and I were part of a church where we led many small groups (or Bible studies in the home). We would often use Christian books as the basis of our studies. One of my all-time favorite books was Max Lucado’s Cure for the Common Life: Living in Your Sweet Spot. I’m pretty sure God was starting to point me to my purpose back then, which is why the book was so inspiring. If you’ve never read it, you definitely need to put it on your reading list.

In it, Lucado describes our God-given sweet spot: “A zone, a region, a life precinct in which you were made to dwell. He tailored the curves of your life to fit an empty space in his jigsaw puzzle. And life makes sense when you find your spot.”

Friend, your dream is probably the manifestation of your God-given sweet spot! And when you lean into it, not only will life make sense, but your life will also be fulfilling.

Rod Stryker states it this way: “Your long-term happiness and fulfillment depend on your ability to fulfill your soul’s unique purpose and to fill the place in the world that only you can fill, making the contribution that only you can make.”

To maintain that sense of fulfillment throughout life, there are a few things we need to be aware of while dream building.

The difference between our dream and its realization

Here’s the crazy thing about chasing dreams. There’s the dream we visualize and then there’s the dream that materializes. Can you relate? If so, you are one step closer to living a fulfilled life and not a frustrated one.

The fact of the matter is that the dream we first visualize is rarely the dream we end up with, but the dream we end up with is usually so much better. However, while we spend time in the gap between the initial conception of our dream and the dream’s full manifestation, how we see the dream shaping up can get tricky. Tricky, that is, if we get too clingy to the original picture in our heads.

As a faith-filled world changer, this is where you must develop the belief that God is always working and what we may have expected to manifest is probably a little (or a lot) different from His vision. And since He is the expert Creator, we need to lean into Him and allow for some substitutions.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord in Isaiah 55:8 (NIV).

So, relax world changer, He’s got this! Expect some surprises along the way and expect to be amazed!

The size of our dream determines the length of our journey

Now, along with realizing and faithfully accepting that our dream may have a slightly different look than when we first visualized it, the other important factor to acknowledge is that if our dream is big, the gap between visualization and manifestation will also be big. This simply means, big dreams take time!

“Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.” Earl Nightingale

I mean, there’s a lot of steps that go on between visualizing our dream and seeing our dream manifest. This is why initially the mission statement of She Steps Forward Coaching was: “Empowering everyday women to chase God-sized dreams by bridging the gap between their vision and their destiny.” [By the way, be sure to check out my blog post What Does the Path to Your Dream Look Like?]

I want to help you make continual progress toward your dream. Continual progress will help fill the gap and increase your level of fulfillment. It’s important that we dream big dreams and then have the patience to work through the process of seeing them come to life.

“Dream no small dreams for they have no power to move the hearts of men.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Dreaming should be a continuous process

Another important step that reinforces our sense of fulfillment during dream building is allowing ourselves to continue dreaming. We can continue to expand our dream, while we work toward our initial goals. By continuing to dream and exploring how our dream could be made better, we only heighten our creativity. And along the way, we may come up with some really great ideas to incorporate into our existing dream.

“Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.” T.S. Eliot

What I know is that our God is a God of expansion. He seeks the expansion of His kingdom to the four corners of the Earth. Remember what He told Abraham when they first met. “I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendants beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore” (Genesis 22:17). I’d say that was a pretty expanded dream.

So, dream your dream, world changer, and then dream some more after that. You can’t out dream God.

Enjoy the journey and celebrate the pivotal moments

Each step you take toward your dream is a big deal. The journey you’ll take to your dream is uniquely yours. Don’t put so much pressure on yourself and rush through it. “It is good to have an end to journey towards; but it is the journey that matters in the end.” Ursula K. LeGuin

The journey is actually more important than the destination because your growth during the journey is invaluable. When you can look back at the progress you’ve made, you’ll find fulfillment. You’ll also be able to point to some very pivotal moments. Acknowledgement of milestones helps you gauge how far you’ve come and motivates you to keep going.

“Remember to celebrate milestones as you prepare for the road ahead.” Nelson Mandela

Be open to new discoveries during the journey

While you journey toward your dream’s manifestation, there will be some surprises – good surprises along the way. Discovering new things can be refreshing, exciting, and very fulfilling. The human mind thrives on new discoveries. “Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” Andre Gide

Each year that I have moved the dream forward in creating a ministry that can elevate women who are working toward the development of a business, ministry, or nonprofit, I have discovered new ways to support them and new areas that need exploring. I have also been introduced to a new culture, the culture of Africa, and learned the unique challenges facing African women. These things have brought new excitement and energy to my dream. In the future, I’m hoping to discover sustainable partnerships with other organizations, and I can’t wait to see where that leads.

“The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.” Oprah Winfrey

Understand life is both good and bad, not one or the other

I’ve always considered myself an optimist by nature. However, over the years, I’ve learned that while life can be filled with high and low moments, it’s how we process these moments that determines if we label them highly positive or highly negative.

People who find fulfillment in life have accepted these moments will occur and have decided that moments of great joy balance out with moments of great distress. Having an outlook that focuses on the balance versus the extremes of these moments helps us to not be swayed erratically by them.

The Bible states God “gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike” (Matthew 5:45 NLT). Though He cares for all equally, He also deals out justice equally as well. God is a God of balance.

Learning to deal rationally with life’s moments helps us to push through when times are hard. This is important in dream building. It’s easy to knock out our to-do lists when we’re happy, but not so much when we are feeling down. It also helps us fight through periods of apathy when the road gets long.

“When you are traveling in the gap toward your dream, the majority of the time you will not feel like doing the right thing to enable your dream to come true. You’ll need to do it anyway.” John Maxwell

So, world changer, I’ll ask you again. Are you fulfilled while working toward your dream? This is a crucial factor that will determine your ability to chase your dream to the end.