I’m Living My Dream

Childhood dreams. They are the beginning of our hopes for the future. Some may seem far- fetched, and indeed they may change over time; but without dreams we might never reach our full, God-given potential.

I was always fascinated with words, so it’s not surprising that one of my childhood dreams was to be a writer. Imagine my delight to find an advertisement while perusing a magazine at my grandparents one summer. Those interested in writing were encouraged to send in the attached postcard. As a 9-year old, this seemed like a good idea, since I didn’t realize they were actually going to want to enroll me in a course, likely receiving a nice fee for doing so. I promptly filled out the postcard and mailed it.

For years – yes, years! – my grandmother received their letters addressed to me, and faithfully saved them to give to me the next time I visited, even though I told her it was okay to discard them. These letters were really of no significance; they were form letters; but still, my childhood dream never completely left me. I wanted to be a writer.

Now, in what many would call my golden years, I’m having that opportunity. An occasional piece for national WMU, a devotional series for Illinois Baptist Women, and now the first blog post for the IBW blog. Suffice it to say, I’m living my dream.

I truly believe that God wants our obedience, not necessarily our skill. He’s the One who gets the glory when we let Him work through us,..

Jeanette Cloyd

When Carmen Halsey, who serves as a Leadership Development Director on the IBSA Growth Team, invited me to write the Holy Week devotional series, I was excited, yet overwhelmed. I felt so inadequate… and truthfully, I was inadequate.

BUT, God!

I truly believe that God wants our obedience, not necessarily our skill. He’s the One who gets the glory when we let Him work through us, so I turned to Him, asking Him to guide my thoughts and my words. I asked Him to show me afresh some truths from the Scriptures surrounding Holy Week. He was faithful! (Isn’t He always?)

Each of the eight-day devotions in the series focuses on a vignette from Scripture, poses some application questions to help us ponder what the passage means to us today, and concludes with a brief prayer.

It is my prayer that these devotions prepare us to worship the Lord with new enthusiasm this Easter season. May we never lose sight of the great sacrifice He made on our behalf.

Oh, and those childhood dreams He instills within us? May we not lose sight of those either if they are truly from God.

Written by Jeanette Cloyd.
Jeanette Cloyd’s days are busy working alongside her husband Brent who is the Associational Mission Strategist of Greater Wabash Baptist Association, caring for their son Brock, visiting her dad and the other residents of the Assisted Living Facility in Fairfield where they live, and doing volunteer work. At day’s end, she spends time indulging her creative side by making cards, which can be seen on her blog Cre8tive Play, Facebook, and Instagram.