Big, Big Plans

Did I just name a blog post after a Chris Lane song? Yes, I think I did. But that’s fine, because it’s kind of my favorite song at the moment, just saying!

Today I’m going to talk about one of my favorite topics. If you read this post, you know that I am an optimist, and that I’m passionate about dreams. I like to think there’s no such thing as too big of a dream. In fact, I think we are created to have big dreams. Without them, how could God ever use us?

We all have different passions for a reason. Just because your passion isn’t exactly church-related, doesn’t mean He can’t still use you, or that it’s not considered important. I think that no matter what you’re passionate about – sports, art, music, teaching, speaking, fitness, etc – He can use you in that area to do great things. I think if we give these passions to Him, He will help us find much more purpose in them than if we are trying to go at them alone.

Sometimes I’m scared to ask God for something because I think it’s too unrealistic and I’d rather not get my hopes up. But honestly, I don’t think “unrealistic” is in God’s vocabulary. After all, He’s the God of miracles, and nothing we ask Him for is too big of a miracle.

I believe we need to work hard and pray harder for the dreams we desire. Sometimes I get caught up in just the work part, and forget about the praying part, which is even more important. Or I go to people and tell them my dreams, hoping they’ll reassure me and say it’s a realistic idea.

But our dreams shouldn’t be based off human expectations and realities. They should be God-sized dreams, with God-sized plans to accomplish them.

Ever since I was twelve years old, I’ve known that God wanted me to write and publish a book. For years, I worked hard on that manuscript, but I didn’t fully believe I would be able to publish a book as a teenager. For a long time, I didn’t even tell hardly anyone that I was writing a book because I feared they would think my dream wasn’t realistic. Each time I talked to a different publishing company, I became overwhelmed by the amounts of money they asked me for and their sophisticated marketing tools. There were definitely points at which I wanted to give up and forget about that book. At one point, nearly my entire manuscript was deleted, and I had to spend months trying to rewrite it. But something kept me going, and now I can say confidently that that thing was God.

Four and a half years have now passed since I started drafting that book. I see now that God came through each time I needed Him to. I prayed that He would provide an editor, and I ended up with the best editor, who altered her prices to fit my budget. He also provided a proofreader, and friends and family willing to beta read my books and offer useful, encouraging feedback.

Now, I am so indescribably excited to tell you all that I will, in fact, be publishing this book!!! I have found a publisher and am working with them right now. I will be announcing the launch date soon, and will keep you all updated for when you can officially order my Medieval adventure/romance novel, called Escape The Woods!

If we are willing to step up and take on the dreams God puts in our hearts, they can take us to places we never imagined possible. It’s going to take lots of prayer, lots of hard work, and big, God-sized plans. But the payoff is going to be better than we ever imagined!

Love,

Gabriella Catherine

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