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Jason.

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Jason is the founder of Ignite Student Ministries, a dynamic ministry igniting youth, young adults and university students to passionately pursue Christ and transform society in high schools, work places and universities around the world.

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The Practical Side of Dreaming

Jason VanaJason Vana

Photo Credit: Petras Gagilas (Creative Commons)

Last week, we looked at pursuing our dreams.

I wrote about how it’s important to take time to dream.
We discussed the act of rediscovering the gifts and passions that form our dream.
We even talked about the time it takes for a dream to form.

We love talking about our dreams.

It’s easy to sit behind a computer screen and write about these big ideals we have for our lives. We like to share our dreams with friends and family and coworkers. We get a sense of satisfaction talking about what we want to do with our lives.

There’s no work involved in sharing a dream.
No risk, either.

But sharing our ideals and thoughts and desires doesn’t bring our dream any closer to reality.

All the encouragement and insight and inspiration in the world won’t write that book, or secure that dream job, or start that nonprofit, or plant that church, or build your own business. Conferences and speakers and blog posts can spark the idea and get you inspired, but they won’t achieve your dream for you.

In order to bring your dream into reality, you have to get practical:

Count the cost.
Every dream comes at a price. It will cost your time, energy, and resources. Figure out the costs you are willing to pay, and those that are non-negotiable to you. It will help you determine if you need to rework your dream or call it quits.

Talk with someone who has been there.
Grab coffee or set up a time to chat with someone who has done what you want to do. Ask questions. Get their advice. Find out what they would do differently. And take a notepad.

Make a plan.
Once you’ve determined the price you’re willing to pay and talked with someone who has gone before you, it’s time to make a plan.

Start with what you have.
The greatest hinderance to our dreams is getting started. We have big ideas that are radically different than what we are living, and it’s difficult to know where to begin. The solution? Start with what you have. Want to write a book? Start by writing a few pages. Want to start a business? Provide your services to your friends. Want to start a ministry? Volunteer in your church. The key is to get started doing what you can right now.

Dreaming and visioning is great, but at some point, we need to take our dreams and ideals and desires and begin turning them into reality. Otherwise, they will die within us and never be brought into reality.

What can you start doing today to work towards your dream?

Jason is the founder of Ignite Student Ministries, a dynamic ministry igniting youth, young adults and university students to passionately pursue Christ and transform society in high schools, work places and universities around the world.