Dream dreams

What is Your Dream?

I love asking people what their dream is.

It's a great help for conversation, taking those shallow 'how-are-you-I'm-fine-thanks-you-?' conversations to something a bit more substantial and just simply more interesting, but the more I ask people the question, the more I love asking it!

There are so many different responses I get. I love to hear the variations of dreams that exist in the world, the surprising dreams, the huge dreams, the 'impossible without God' dreams, they are great to listen to. When we think of our own dreams, we may get the feeling that everyone has the same dream as us, but more the more ask, the more I realise how individual, how specific and how unique each persons dream is. There are 3 main reasons I love asking the question:

1. A dream tells you a lot about a person.
It's not just fascinating to find out what these dreams are, but you can tell a lot about a person from the dream(s) they do or don't have.

You can begin to see their passions and what is often on their mind often. You get a glimpse into what makes people tick, you begin to see people's priorities; you can see what drives them, what steers them, what keeps them going during tough times. There is so much it can tell you about that person.

2. You may be the dream catalyst for them.
There is a conversation I have far too often for my own liking. This usually starts with me asking for what their dream is in life, and they respond with a shrug of the shoulders, or a 'I don't know'. Most of the time I can't help myself at this point and need to ask the question "well, if you could do ANYTHING in the world, or be ANY type of person you want - no limitations - who would you be?" I get keen to dig deeper, see what makes these people tick.

Sometimes these kinds of people take the bait, and we begin to see some eyes lighting up, some brains churning away revealing that little more about them. They may not know the ins and outs of what career path they want to take, or what they'd love to do, but they know what they like, and they may have an outlandish, unreal sounding idea of their future (no matter how vague it may be)... I love this. It's the beginning of dreaming.

A dream can begin from anywhere, and so many places. Sometimes people hear from God directly in an audible voice. Others get a strong sense that God is directing them. Others 'bump into' their dreams as they experience life, others follow their passions and loves. But some may begin to discover their dreams because you have asked them. You may stir thoughts, and may be the first person to ever ask them that question. Who knows what you may begin in their life through a simple question, you can be the catalyst for them realising their dream.

3. It gets you thinking about your own dream.

Not always- but sometimes after asking others about their dream you get asked the question back. Then the pressure is on. Do YOU have a dream? What is it? If you have a dream, are you able to communicate it well enough to others which should inevitably get yourself excited once again? These conversations cause us to think about our own dreams as well as others. As we speak out our dreams, it gives them something concrete to stand on, something real. It stops being an unrealistic, untouchable concept that is stuck in your mind, and lays it out to be put into action. This may be slightly scary at first, but it will take you from being a dreamer, to somebody of action.

That's why I ask the question, and that's why I reckon you should ask it too.

Eleven and Twelve.

It's so annoying. I've succumbed to the internal self-created pressure to write a blog about New Year. I'm sure tumblr, blogger, wordpress and all the other blog websites are bursting at the seams with new blog authors, new blog posts, and dusted down blogs with a fresh look and a fresh post ready to show the rest of the world who are keen to read and keen to write there own. And here I am, like a lemming following everybody else to write something that everybody else has probably written already, just written in my own way. So, enjoy/endure.

On New Year's Eve my wonderful wife created a template of two lists for her, our friend Rosie and myself to fill in. They had 2 names. The first was 'Eleven Great Things from 2011', and the other 'Twelve Hopes for 2012'. It now is firmly stuck in my journal.

It was great fun writing down and chatting through our completed list of the great things from 2011. Sharing memories and moments from this year that quite frankly, rocked. My list included a few events I went to, some different countries I had the opportunity to visit, and of course my wedding was pretty high up the list. Often we spend so much time thinking about the newness of January and all it brings, without enjoying what has happened. So many great things happened in 2011, and I guarantee that no matter how awful your year may have seemed, there will have been some good things that took place too. Write them down, stick them in your journal, tell your friends. Celebrate the good stuff that happened.
The second list of our hopes for 2012 was also fun to write down and chat about. It comes with a challenge though (12 challenges to be exact), which seems like far too much stress and hassle for a New Year I think, but ah well that's what I get for having a futurist wife!

I'm somebody who is quite goal orientated. I like to get things done, and having a list to tick things off and say 'job done' fills me with satisfaction. So, the sheer thought of having a list with uncompleted, or failed tasks scares me. I know I would get deeply disappointed with myself if I don't complete them, but you want to put big thoughts and plans down in order to inspire you to action! It's a dangerous game to play. Whether they are new plans for this year, or changing of behaviours or attitudes, or developing or launching a new idea, use the lists you write now to stir you to action later in the year.

Anyone can write a resolution. Anyone can have an idea they'd like to do. Anyone can say how they'd like things to be different. It takes an activist to take steps to see them happen. It takes a patient person to wait until you begin to see real results and productivity. It takes perseverance to keep going through the months later on in the year that aren't as fresh and interesting as January. It takes guts, courage and determination, and of course a ton of prayer.

Writing resolutions and plans down for 2012 is a dangerous game to play. But play it. I dare you.

Make Every Bird Count

I realise I am years behind many, but I have recently got a new phone on which I am able to play this game that has consumed all phone-gamers..... Angry Birds.
The idea is simple, you catapult a load of birds toward some green pigs, attempting to knock them all and get a load of points. the early levels are simple: You are given plenty of birds and only need to hit 1 or 2 pigs in order to complete it. However, as the levels go on, it gets harder. There are less birds to fling, more pigs to eradicate and more obstacles to get the birds over or through. In these later levels, every bird counts. You need to use every bird in your arsenal in order to defeat every pig. What's more, each bird needs to be flung in the right way in order to smash down the obstacles, and take out every pig. It's really tough, and can be really annoying, but is always addictive, and of course is pretty mindless, but we've all got to relax some way!


However, recently a game of angry birds wasn't mindless for me. It got me thinking. In the same ways that in the later levels every bird counts, the same concept is applicable to us. Every Bird Counts.



We don't go around flinging birds at green pigs, but we have other obstacles to break down. We have other things in life to build up. Every bird to fling in Angry Bird can represent an opportunity we have in our lives. We have our character to build up. And if we want to get the most we can out of our 80 or so years on this earth, lets make every opportunity count, each day, each action, and each conversation. In Psalm 39:1 David declares that he will be careful that what he speaks about is holy and blameless. Lets do the same. Lets declare that with each conversation we are in, we make them count. Lets speak life into situations, speak encouragement, speak peace and joy into people's lives.



One moment where we get angry for no reason, where we put people down, where we slag somebody off can set us back, can prevent us from fully being who God has called us to be. I know I'm guilty of not making conversations count. Of wasting opportunitites to encourage somebody and instead being full of gossip or a 'moaning' attitude. But now I want to make every moment count, making every conversation I'm in count. For myself, and for others.



We're only going to get a certain amount of birds to fling in our lives, so

lets make every bird count.

Broken Bulbs

Two days after putting our first ever Christmas tree decorations up,we had a problem. There was a whole bunch of stuff that went up; including the tree, the hanging bits, the table decorations, the candles, and even some outside lights.

Now these lights aren't full on, they are not tacky or over the top, just one simple set of white berry lights above our porch. I thought it would be simple, how wrong I was. Two days after them being up and on display for or whole neighbourhood to see (as we are new to our road there is a higher pressure to make a good impression!), I noticed something. One evening on my way into the house I saw a dark patch. Not only had 1 light gone out, but the Nearby bulbs were out too. So annoying. I spent a half hour trying to figure out which was the duff bulb to no avail. 1 light has gone (I still haven't sorted it), and it's knocked some of the others out too.

It reminded me about people. We are an easily influenced bunch. If 1 of our group is in a bad mood, everyone else in the group may get in a foul mood too. If one person begins to slag someone off, it's just so easy to fall in line and join in. Too many times have I seen whole groups of friends leave church and drift away from God because one of them decides to leave and the other follow behind them.

1 person going out can cause others to go out too.

Naturally, our relationship with God and our walks with God are all individual, and they are not based on other people's spiritual journeys. But we would be totally naive to think that we weren't influenced by other people. We can't control it, it's in our nature to be led by others, we cant stop being influenced by other people. But we can control who we are influenced by. Get the right people around you. People who aren't likely to be like bulbs that 'go out'. Be near LED people, who stay alight, who's lights shine brightly, consistently. Be influenced by those kinds of people, people who inspire and cause you to burn brighter. Then maybe we can avoid strings of people leaving churches, as we stick together, keeping our lights burning bright for Him...

Anyway, better get back to fixing these outside lights, any help greatly appreciated!

Hoovering Problems

I generally love living. I quite enjoy all the different things that make up life. Except Cleaning. Mondays are my cleaning day. Well to be honest, its more of a cleaning morning but half a day of cleaning is plenty for me.

Hoovering isn't actually too bad when it comes to cleaning jobs. Simply pushing the sucking-tube backwards and forwards over the carpet is simple, straightforward and you see instant results. In fact, most dry spillages are solved with a quick once over with a hoover. We've all been guilty of hoovering over anything and everything, particularly those things that are slightly too big, or not really made for a hoover. Those kind of things are annoying, but its so much easier to run the hoover over them instead of doing the slightly harder task of picking it up by hand. Well it's easier most of the time.

Except when that 'thing' won't fit up the hoover.

Sometimes we run the hoover over the same 'thing' on the floor again and again and again, determined not to pick it up by hand, but telling ourselves that the hoover will pick it up, even when we know that the poor Henry or Dyson doesn't stand a chance.

Problems arrive all the time. We learn to expect them, and deal with them when they arise. However, lets remember that not all problems can be solved the same way, the easy way. Some problems will just need a 'quick once over', other problems require something different, Sometimes issues may take harder work in order for them to be solved. Some issues may take longer to resolve. However, if we try to solve all different problems in the same way we won't get anywhere. Whether they be relational, practical, emotional, home-related or work related, different problems require different ways of dealing with them.

Maybe you would call yourself a 'people person', maybe a 'task focused person', maybe somebody who is heavily influenced by how your decisions will effect other people, and led by other people's opinions. Or maybe you base your decisions on logic, facts, or passed successes. Lets realise that we cannot live in one of these camps alone. There will be times when we need to use logic and facts based decisions to solve problems and issues, and other times when we need to hear out and base our decisions on other people, how it will effect them also. Why not try both?

Some problems will need a quick fix solution by just running the hoover over it. Other times we will need to bend down and do some harder work to pick up the problem with our hands. Lets not be afraid to get our hands dirty in order to solve problems, as not everything will fit up that hoover.

My Sister.

With my thoughts to blog more, I wanted to write this entry. I have read entries in other blogs where the author has shared how a close friend or family member are important to them, writing about the effect they have had in their life. Not only has that most likely been of amazing encouragement to the person being written about, but has also helped me feel encouraged, reading about the awesome types of people there are here on Earth. Here's a post about another one of these people, who is important to me.

You know those kind of stories and jokes that nobody else finds funny except for those couple of people who were initially involved in the joke or story? Please indulge me for this short moment as I discuss a few.

1. You may or may not have seen Bugsy Malone. I don't know what you think of that film, but I love it, especially this 3 second clip during the finale song where a group of the guys simply sing 'la la la la la la laaa' (it is 3:10 into this clip). My sister and I love nothing more than singing that little 3 second clip and laughing whilst others have no idea what we're going on about.

2. There are plenty of coasters and place mats at my parents house. The place mats have country pubs on, but there is one specific place mat that my sister and I spent probably days of our lives fighting over, carefully swapping them around on the dinner table so that we had the best one without the other seeing. Again, nobody else would care about this place mat but us, they would have no idea what we're doing.

3. 'Loads of moolar, loads of moolar, loads of moolar loads of moo'.....

OK. Private jokes finished now. Stay with me.

Sally is my sister. She has been for my whole life. That may seem a stupid, obvious thing to say, but to be honest, it isn't necessarily the standard practice families. Many people have distant, detached, or even non-existent relationships with their siblings. My experience is so far from that upsetting idea. She has been over and above what any sister should be like.
My sister is simply brilliant. Growing up with somebody who would always support, encourage, protect and direct me has been amazing. Sally has always been there for me and is always there for me. Despite the various things she goes through, she remains there for -not just me- but everyone around her too. I was never bullied when I was at school, but whenever I came under any trouble with anybody Sally would always tell me that she would stand up for me and protect me. I felt so loved and cared for. When she was a teenager and I was an annoying pre-teen, she still spent time with me, and we'd have so much fun together. Now she is a mother of three, she still has time for me, always up for a coffee and a chat, always available to go on mini-adventures, always available to cook tasty food, always available to make me warm and cool clothes and hats. And she is always available to do all the same for Heather.

Often I hear people say to Sally 'you are like a sister to me', or 'you've been like a big sister to me'. Well guess what. I have the awesome privilege to actually call her my actual sister. We don't get to choose our family, and I know I wouldn't change mine ever. She is kind, thoughtful, caring, genuine, honest, Godly, normal (not 'boring' normal, but not 'weird'. Well, she is 'funny' weird, but- well- you know what mean). She is real, compassionate, incredibly creative, idea-filled and brings life into any situation and conversation she is involved in. I know that in previous years when she was part of Kerith she had a huge impact on so many teenage girls who are now growing into amazing women, and now she is at the Beacon church in Camberley, she is having a similar effect, blessing, training and leading many people to become wonderful men and women of God.

She has 3 quality children, and an awesome husband. Nobody can know the Ropers and not be blessed by them. It's the 'Roper-effect'.

One thing that would never be said of Sally is that she's a woman of few words (haha!), but she is a woman of wonderful words, and I love the way she can spend 1 hour with people and they can be taken up in their lift, feeling encouraged, valued, cared for and wanted. She makes people like they belong. She speaks life and love into people.

She is like a sister to many people, but I'm the only one who can say that she is my sister. I love her very much and I'm very proud of her.

Tomato Timers and Giveaway #1

Recently I've felt more challenged to write some more. I've finally began to write in my journal once again after a long spell of simply nothing being written down, and as well as that, I'm now stirred to write some more in this blog.

I received a delivery from Hong Kong yesterday that has now given me the idea to start something new on my blog that I've seen on other blogs (that's right, I'm stealing the idea) to give away things, and this is first thing to give away!

Quite a while ago now Simon Benham our Senior Pastor at Kerith Community Church preached on the importance of 'stopping' and finding Sabbath in your life (hear the message here). It was a great message that we all need to hear in our non-stop (or-feel-guilty-when-we-do-stop) lifestyles. Personally, my Myers Briggs type is an ENTJ, and a classic characteristic of an ENTJ is that I can rush from one thing to the next, not stopping or taking time to relax as I try to tick off everything on my 'To Do' list. I've even noticed that when I speak to people I can sometimes not stop to breathe, it's ridiculus!

So this idea of 'stopping' (or 'opping' - it could be a silent 'st') is so important for me, I need to remind myself of it regularly. On this weekend, a method called the 'Pomodoro Technique' was spoken of, in which you spend 35 minutes working, followed by 5 minutes of rest. This was classically kept track of by using one of those tomato timers. Well, way back when it was preached, I thought it would be a good idea to buy some of them to give to people if they are interested! So I now have 5 tomato timers all the way from Hong Kong to give away to anyone who wants them! If you want one, just leave a comment somewhere, either on this blog, or tweet to me, or somehow(!) tell me how it would be useful to you, and I'll choose who will get one! Or, (most likely to happen!), the first 5 to respond can have one.

By the way, they are hardly the most sophisticated, posh things, only paid a very small price for them, so cannot be held liable for how long or short their life spans are, but hey, everyone loves a freebie!