Every Godly dream has a death before it fully comes to life. Jesus taught us this principle in John 12 as he teaches about seeds that must fall to the ground and die. The idea being communicated is simple: every seed has a hard outer shell. When a seed is planted in the ground, that outer shell “dies” as it begins to decay over time. When that outer shell is gone, the true life of that seed is released into the ground and comes to “life.”
Dara and I have been dreaming of opening Ebenezers Coffeehouse (a non-profit coffeehouse & multiple use venue in Uptown) for over five years. We were thisclose last year to landing an amazing property in the heart of the city. We worked hard for ten months on plans. Walked countless thousands of steps around that property. And it all came to a screeching stop and fell through only days before it looked like we were going to get this property. The dream died. And I cried. Literally.
Four months (and no activity or plans being made) later, I got a random check in the mail. It was from a friend of Center City Church that had attended for a short season. She was now living in Tennessee and she wrote me a note:
“Pastor David, I wanted to be one of the first to invest into the dream to see Ebenezers come to Uptown Charlotte.” Included in that envelope was a check for $50. I teared up and realized that this dream still had a pulse.
Fast forward 4 months. I just sat in a meeting this past week with two businessmen in our community that are incredibly supportive of our vision. After that meeting, I got an email from another out-of-state friend:
“I want to give $1,000 toward this (Ebenezers). It isn’t much, but I want to sow a seed.”
Every dream has to die before it can truly come to life. And now there are 1,050 seeds that have been planted into this vision. I believe with all my heart that we are about to see an incredible miracle of God’s provision. And it all started with a random $50 check and a $1,000 email from two out of state friends.
What seeds are you planting into the dreams of others today?
