Don't forget to Dream

Best advice I've heard in a while was - set a goal, a big one, one you may not reach for 30 years, but can work toward your entire life.

In ministry, it's easy to lose yourself in the details. What's more, when you're working in a church, where you're the associate, rather than the pastor, at some you find that in supporting that pastor, you lose focus of your own dreams and visions.

I've been reading and praying through, Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Martin. And while I started it in an effort to support my husband in a more systematic and continuous way through prayer, I find that it's effect on me has been - a challenge.

As I read through the prayers, I see where I have failed him. That's not easy for me to admit. But loving your husband, after the newlywed era has faded, children have arrived, frustrations, struggles and plain life have creeped into the picture - is so utterly important and just as easy to forget to do in the busy-ness of ministries and its demands.

And yet a wife's prayers for her husband, her support, her investment in the wellness of his heart, mind and spirit - can make or break her man. Two verses pop into mind constantly these days, from Psalms 31:11 The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain...23 Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land.

I feel helplessly guilty about the uncertainty and frustration we've experienced of late. I'm afraid I haven't done my part like I should. I've become consumed with the details and lost sight of the goal. I've felt resentment and bitterness, disappointment and doubt all come creeping at my heart, and I'm guilty of standing back and letting them enter my home.

But as I read this book, and as I reflect, praying for some relief, more wise words - but these from a television show : it should always be us against the problem, never us against each other.

Ever have a revelation of the obvious?

So, I envision it like this: my husband is the driver, I am the navigator and God provided the map. If you've ever taken a very long trip you know that the navigator keeps the driver company, helps watch for signs, and keeps their eyes on the map to make sure that they get to the destination without any unnecessary detours.

That's exactly my job, to support my husband, keep him company, watch out for him when he gets weary, observe and help keep him on course when anyone or anything threatens to take him off course. Encourage him to dream his dreams and help him visualize his success until he achieves them.