What do we think of when someone talks about having a dream? I am always curious when someone begins to describe a dream they have for expanding their area of ministry or developing a new ministry or business. I listen to the details carefully in order to hear key ingredients.
Dreams that have substance create passion. An individual who speaks of a dream they have with amazing passion, often moves me. I get energized when hearing someone's dream. You can see the passion in their eyes, hear it in their voice and observe it in their body language. They tend to bring the subject up often and are relentless with the idea that the dream needs to be executed now. You will hear the person with a dream begin to figure out the details of how they might start and finance the endeavor.
I believe God has endowed each of us with gifts and talents that fit into a dream either we have or He has for our lives. I know at times that our past life experiences cloud our ability to see just how God might use our gifts. We often don't know the difference between a burden and a call. Let me explain.
As a child, I was always taken to church. I can remember missionaries coming to our church, telling stories and showing pictures of their works around the world. On each occasion I would feel a burden for that part of the world and for the ministry the missionary presented. Years later, I realized that a burden does not necessarily mean a call. We can have many burdens and have empathy for many areas of ministry, but a burden is not necessarily a call.
When God calls us to a specific ministry He puts a dream in our heart that we cannot shake. It is a burden beyond all other burdens. We think of this often and consider how we might make the dream a reality. We see down the road to when the dream is being fulfilled and may even have dreams that we are already accomplishing the goal of our dream.
I believe God wants to give each of us a dream!
Conrad Hilton said "To accomplish big things, I am convinced you must first dream big dreams."
D.L. Moody said on his deathbed, "If God is your partner, make your dreams and plans big."
Dreaming big is not enough! We've all met dreamers. Conrad Hilton also said, "Your dreams must be backed up with much prayer and hard work! Or it has no hands and feet."
At Teen Challenge we pray hard, work hard, and believe God to bless the work. I have found an additional truth regarding dreaming big dreams--God wants all the glory! How He gets it is what is hard on us.
Our dreams, our visions, and our goals often have to die, come to ruin, be crushed, destroyed, or fail just to get us out of the way. Why? So God can revive the vision! So God will get the glory! His way, His timing, His glory!
Philippians 2:13 says, "For it is God who works in you, both to will, and do according to His good purpose." Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."
We can read Nehemiah 1:2-3 and see that Nehemiah had a dream to see God's people free. Notice how Nehemiah's call came. Not from a prophecy seminar, not an angel's visit, not an audible voice, not a burning bush.
I believe, the need was the call.
When he heard his brothers sharing what was happening back in Jerusalem, his heart was broken and he immediately went to his knees.
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Jerry Nance
Manipur, India. It was great to use this platform to connect the local community with TC. We opened our residential men's center in February (13) and currently have 23 students. We have also started co
received an urgent prayer request from our director in Nepal. He stated that, "a local gang had come to the center three times and threatened to do them harm if they did not close down." Syam's response to me was, "We will not run, God will protect and fight for us." The directors, Syam and his wife Tina are expecting their first baby at any time- for me to witness this kind of commitment and courage makes me realize how much our brothers and sisters around the globe sacrifice to bring the light of God's love to their own people. May we all be challenged to be obedient, no matter what the cost!
points for this initiative is that it was birthed from Delhi Teen Challenge...what an encouragement to see young leaders catch the vision of multiplication as they release others to start new initiatives in other needy areas! In Riasi, we currently operate a community outreach center as well as a men's residential program. Collaboration, with other like-minded NGO's in the area, helps us to conduct sport programs and prevention and awareness campaigns as well as working with the prison system. 
