"Dreams have only one owner at a time. That's why dreamers are lonely."
Is this really true? Are all dreamers bound by their creativity and dreaming to a life of loneliness?
If I think about this deeply, as deeply as I can muster, I'd have to say that I would agree. A creative person can write down all of his or her ideas, publish them, print them, send them to hundreds of his or her friends, and yet still not have really translated the original idea correctly. It is the horrible truth that befalls the creative dreamer: It is nearly impossible to bring someone into your dream.
And, if it's nearly impossible to bring someone with you into a dream, then, aren't you bound to be lonely?
I think this quote rings true for me most especially right now. I'm newly single, newly re-focused on what I want to do with my life, and newly re-energized by the One who made me. If I'm to live a life of service to my Creator, then shouldn't I welcome all the wonderful dreams, visions and ideas He gives me? Absolutely.
I think that one of the things we have to accept as a creative expander of the Kingdom is the fact that we are not among many others like us. We're a very small, select bunch.
My pastor and mentor, Mike Slaughter, the chief dreamer of Ginghamsburg Church, calls all the members of our church-in-a-cornfield to pledge our service annually. I find this both a very simple and a very complex thing. In one corner, I can find a couple of things that I can sign up to do with regularity. I teach Sunday school classes three times a week in the children's ministry, as I have done for now eight years. But, can a true servant of Christ pledge himself to serve in all the unplanned ways that come up in one's life?
This morning I'm driving up to the church campus to help Kim Miller, longtime friend and fellow creative dreamer, design a space for the Vine bookstore. I just found out about this opportunity to serve just this past Sunday while at the Miller's house (see before posted Blog). If I wasn't a true servant of Christ, couldn't I easily point out that I already was serving, excuse myself from the opportunity, and go about the rest of my day? I think that one thing that has to be emphasized is that being a servant of Jesus is a full-time job, not a recreational hobby. If you want to fully immerse yourself in the teachings of Christ and live out His calling, you have to be ready 24/7. Standing ready with other followers is a powerful experience, one that brings me great reassurance that He truly reigns almighty. Although many times throughout my day I'm reminded of how alone I am, when I step back and realize all the sisters and brothers in Christ I'm united with, I accept this temporary feeling and pledge my support to His work in spite of my hesitations.
So long as I continue to band together with other creative dreamers, isn't that, at very least, a tear at the wall of loneliness? I'm following Henry David Thoreau's advice: "If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with success unexpected in common hours."
Writing from home... Brandon M Haskins.
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