I have recently been introduced to 'DUMB' goals - a distant cousin to the idea of 'SMART' goals. Whereas Smart goals are very action and outcome directed and short term orientated, Dumb goals are more dreamy and unrealistic. But I have decided we need them to foster hope in our lives, to allow ourselves to dream big, to aid in the setting of more Smart goals and in basically to smash any glass ceilings that we live under. There are a few different acronyms for both Smart and Dumb goals but my favourite is that Dumb goals are:
Dream or Destiny driven
Uplifting or Unlimited
Motivating
Brave or Bold.
On their own, they may seem a little pie in the sky, or Unrealistic (Dumb goals can be Delusional, Unreasonable, Murky and Beyond reach), but Big goals I think can be important, can engage our hearts on a whole new level, and can help us break through the general expectations that we have for ourselves and that others place on us.
It is in this place of imagining what is potentially beyond the glass ceiling that we can dare to seek to let the light in in a new way. I also love a good action or adventure movie where the story line sees the hero achieving the impossible. Movies such as Wonder Woman, or Indiana Jones, or even story lines such as 'The Maze Runner" where the teenagers find themselves trapped in a situation that they are trying to understand and break out of without getting killed. Good vs evil in many ways. But we never apply these things to our own lives. Generally we live with glass ceilings firmly set in place. Which is not always a bad thing.
I have heard it said, though, that kingdom matters are heart matters, and Jesus did indeed promise that he came that we might have life and life to the full.
John 10:10 Amp
The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows].
What does this mean though, and how do we find it? The answer to this is not so clear - maybe we are all a bit like the maze runners - searching for the things of God that we may find fullness of life! I don't believe it is entirely elusive though. I have also been watching the Winter Olympics and have been inspired by some of the flips, tricks and spins in the aerial sports. How on earth do they do it??? Indeed there is a lot of courage in every single run they do. The one thing these athletes have in common, though is that they dare to dream big at an early age.
What these athletes do is well and truly beyond me, but presently I feel like I am seeking for my own dream; my own goal posts, and something I can set my life compass and my heart towards. It is not necessarily something that is desirable in the world's eyes, but rather a God given dream and destiny (this is sounding kind of 'dumb' already!). In my mind it is not so stupid, as God has indeed set my heart and my life on a few different things - such as my work as a Physiotherapist, and my involvement with a missions organisation over a number of years. He has also spoken prophetically through His people, and has set certain things on my heart that are undeniable.
1 Cor 2: 6-13. TPT
We, of course, have plenty of wisdom to pass on to you once you get your feet on firm spiritual ground, but it’s not popular wisdom, the fashionable wisdom of high-priced experts that will be out-of-date in a year or so. God’s wisdom is something mysterious that goes deep into the interior of his purposes. You don’t find it lying around on the surface. It’s not the latest message, but more like the oldest—what God determined as the way to bring out his best in us, long before we ever arrived on the scene. The experts of our day haven’t a clue about what this eternal plan is. If they had, they wouldn’t have killed the Master of the God-designed life on a cross. That’s why we have this Scripture text:
No one’s ever seen or heard anything like this, Never so much as imagined anything quite like it— What God has arranged for those who love him.
But you’ve seen and heard it because God by his Spirit has brought it all out into the open before you.
The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along. Who ever knows what you’re thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God—except that he not only knows what he’s thinking, but he lets us in on it. God offers a full report on the gifts of life and salvation that he is giving us. We don’t have to rely on the world’s guesses and opinions. We didn’t learn this by reading books or going to school; we learned it from God, who taught us person-to-person through Jesus, and we’re passing it on to you in the same firsthand, personal way.
I am a firm believer that God does indeed set things on my heart. The books I read and the things that I go after, such as writing this blog. Here is Australia it is easy to put others down and to clamp down hard on their glass ceilings. As God's people though, I believe it is important to encourage and build each other up in the faith.
1 Thesssalonians 5:10-11, 16-24, 28
He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing... ...Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil. May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
Jesus died for you and He died for me. There is something special in that. I am loved and valued in an extraordinary way and so are you!! There is also something special and mysterious in the resurrection of Christ. It didn't finish at the grave, but rather there is a victory and a living hope that we carry forward together as the body of Christ - the church, even to the darkest corners of the earth. Jesus smashed right through the glass ceiling called death - something we all will face as humans. This is mysterious, but it also very powerful and full of Grace and Truth. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ indeed be with you!!
Together may we overcome the schemes of the enemy and may our lives be filled with love and encouragement as we worship Him with our whole lives and our whole hearts. May we know the indeed the hope to which He calls us. May we see past our glass ceilings to what is possible in Him.
Matt 19:26 (Amp)
But Jesus looked at them (his disciples) and said, “With people [as far as it depends on them] it is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
I kind of like the dumb goals. I would rather dream and risk not realising my dreams in my lifetime, than limit myself to the usual things. The one who calls us is faithful and trustworthy and He will do it!! Let the adventures begin.
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