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This year we have an extra day to make a leap toward our purpose. I wanted to share this message from my heart and a poem I wrote above entitled “Dreams in Due Season” to encourage you to keep going where ever you are on your journey…

So many of us start out life dreaming in wide-eyed wonder – then life happens and leaves us in a dazed slumber. We face disappointments, discouragement and detours…and we get practical.

We become sleepwalkers, settling for the ordinary because the dreams we had seem too lofty, too out of reach. My journey has been similar; throughout the years I’ve had great visions yet often get lost in loneliness and and weary when the dreams don’t always grow the way I imagined.

I want to encourage you today to arise, shine and bring those dreams back to life. Everyone was born with purpose and no one’s purpose is more important than another’s. There are dreams in your heart that were planted there for a reason to impact the world – we all miss out if you don’t water them.

It’s up to you to nurture them – give them some love and let them grow today. Don’t give up on your purpose…you’ll reap a harvest in due season if you don’t give up!

My dream is to inspire you to realize and pursue the importance of your purpose.

What’s your dream? What vision or passion have you set aside for the more practical and everyday cares of life?

I dare you to nourish the seeds of those dreams, nuture them back to health and bring them to the Light – one step guided by God is like a leap and can take you further and higher than you can go on your own.

Share your aspirations, and the dreams you want to accomplish in 2012 in the comments, I’d love to hear them!

God bless, and keep dreaming and nurturing the dreams in your heart – Dear Dreamer, the world awaits!

- Julene “Dreamfleur” Fleurmond

Editor of DreaminSoul.com

P.S. Click here to read the story behind this poem and about a dream that has recently begun to come to fruition for me…

What’s your dream? How do you feel God is calling you to use your gifts?

If you’re not sure where God is calling you, we’ll be listing resources on how you can get help on discovering it – don’t worry, you’ll still be able to enter this contest…

Stay tuned for more info on how you can win a T-Shirt from Dream in Soul Creative.

Click here to join our mailing list and join the Facebook page for updates.

Arise & Shine

Arise…

He lives – arising in light and glory He lives.

So we throw off the shroud of darkness, despair and death left on the cross He bore.

Because He lives we do now – more alive than before.

He lives – in shining pureness and holiness He lives.

His hands, pierced, took the gain, in victory over depression,
dejection, defeat, and shame,

So we could be unfettered, free – unchained.

He lives, robed in rays of majesty – He lives.

He overcame the world with stripes and streams of crimson
Imprinting our impurities on His flesh,
He rose again for our justification, in exchange for our debts.

He lives – He has risen indeed. So we should live – declaring the resurrection;
‘He rising for us, and His power in you and me.’

On this Resurrection Day we focus our attention on His glory, His sacrifice and remember that He died for our sake and rose again to give us life. He didn’t pour out His Blood for us to live entrenched and buried in darkness of past guilt and sin, not to be condemned but to accept His gift of redemption, love and grace:

But he was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5

He came alive after the pressing of the world and so must we. Let’s arise, come awake – and live.

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. Isaiah 60:1

Poem by Julene Fleurmond, Founder of Dream in Soul

We asked Dream in Soul & SOAR readers to share what love means to them. Here’s the winning entry of the “Real Love” T-Shirt contest. Our winner E.A. said:

What does real love mean to you?
Sacrifice! Love is not a feeling. Real love is continous selfless actions towards others!

Why have you decided to wait?
I decided to wait because God’s will is perfect. Anything else outside of that is settling for nonsense! God’s will is worth waiting for.

Click here for more answers from other Dream in Soul readers

Why I’m Waiting – by Dream in Soul’s Founder & SOAR’s Editor Julene

For me waiting for love means being intentional with my time as a single and the plans God has for me now. It is also about trusting that God knows what’s best for me and that though it’s up to me to be open to what opportunities He brings, it is not for me to “chase” them relentlessly.

I made a post about “Real Love” on my Tumblr blog a few weeks and loved seeing how many young people responded and have a passion for waiting on a real love story written by God. 70 people reposted and liked the post, which shows that society isn’t necessarily right in portraying young people as the microwave generation – “those who don’t want to wait.”

I truly believe that God wants to use love on earth not only for our pleasure but to teach us lessons beyond what we can see, and to let us more fully understand God’s love for us and sacrifice on the cross. If we are worth it in the eyes of the God of the universe, then our hearts are worth the wait for true love that resembles His, and a love story written by Him. John 15:13 says, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”

In His sacrifice we are washed, cleansed and showered in love. It is patient, it kind, it never fails. That’s the kind of love God lavishes upon us and that He wants us to wait for. Though unworthy as we feel and imperfect as we are on this Earth, He wants us to trust Him to shape that type of love in us and for us. Waiting for God’s direction, rather then settling for being “unequally yoked,” is worth it.

I shared this piece on SOAR last year but wanted to do so again in case you missed it and for new readers:

He loves me?

I guess it’s almost every girl’s dream, cliché as it seems, to have Prince Charming sweep them off of their feet. Then real life happens and they interact with guys their own age and the daydream of the prince quickly fades. That’s when settling comes in, lowering our standards just so we can experience “love” and be accepted by someone – anyone…

Sometimes experiencing what we call romance in this world leaves us wondering what love truly is. You feel that happy pounding and patter in your chest when he reveals a bouquet of roses, candy and tickets to “that thing you love”. Getting hurt though can peel away the layers of our hearts, like someone plucking the petals from a flower.

He loves me not…

When we’re young, and throughout our lives, we want to feel loved but sometimes we rush out too blindly looking for a person to fill us, and feel the eventual impact and pang of disappointment. I’ve been there and so have so many others – what we thought was sweet sometimes turns sour in the end. With our heart still tender we search for healing – looking for someone, something to mend the torn pieces back together. God is always there, before, now and always waiting for us to give Him our all. Before looking for that type of love from man He wants us to let Him satisfy our every need and want, to fall deeply in love with the One who knows us best…

She tossed and turned all night. She could not sleep. The same thoughts permeated her heart, and her mind was filled with visions.

“Lord,” she prayed. “What does this mean? Is this dream from you? Is this what you really want me to do?”

The answer was soft. Like a message placed in her heart for only her to hear. “I’ve put dreams and hopes in your soul before you were a born, visions you had as a child. Have faith.”

“But Lord, I don’t know if I can do this? What if people don’t understand? What if they-”

“Where is your faith? Who is your master?”

“Lord can’t you fix me first? Make me better, make me worthy, take away my weakness, so that others can be receptive, so that others can be moved, so they can understand. So they won’t reject me – uh, um, I mean You.”

“My child, you must decrease for Me to increase. Have the faith that I can work through you as you are completing the work I have placed in your heart. Have faith that I will put the words in you, that I will be with you as I was with Moses. My power is made strong in your weakness. I give you the spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, and of power. My grace is sufficient.”

“But God, I am so not cut out for this. No one really does this. Shouldn’t I try to be more like -”

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid, for I will be with you wherever you go! You are as I made you, I made you for this purpose. No one has done this because you were made to.”

Silence. She breathed in heavily, her heart pounding with the intensity of His words, His assurance. She was in the pressing place, but the only one pressing was herself, her own lack of abandonment for His ability. His presence was silken, soothing, and slowly she let Him take her guard and give her His. She let her breath out, slowly.

“I’ll try to do it God, though I’m not sure where to start or go.”

“At the beginning. Follow Me, I am the Way.”