Jason Vana: Becoming a Better Man

Opening the Door →

Photo Credit: Wee Keat Chin (Creative Commons)

As Christians, we use that phrase way too much.

It’s become almost cliche.

Whenever we don’t know what to do, whenever it seems that the obstacle is too difficult, whenever there’s someplace we want to be but don’t know how to get there, we end up waiting on God to open that door.

Waiting on God to open a door is equivalent to us doing nothing.

Yes, we need to wait on God’s timing. Yes, there are certain doors only He can open. Yes, we need to wait on Him to open those doors.

That doesn’t mean we sit around and wait for our dream to fall out of the sky on a silver platter.

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Choking Out the Dream →

Photo Credit: iStock Photo

We all have dreams we’ve stopped pursuing.

As we get older, as we take on more responsibilities, our dreams can seem foolish. Or irresponsible. Or downright impossible.

There are bills to pay, mouths to feed, homes to purchase, vehicles to repair, taxes to pay, retirement to plan, vacations to fund, clothes to buy, iPhones to update, yards to maintain, home repairs to make, student loans to pay off, credit cards to pay off, car loans to pay off. Did I mention anything about bills to pay?

It’s no wonder our dreams fall to the bottom of our priorities. Our lives are inundated with much more important responsibilities.

And so our dreams begin to fade.
Fall to the bottom of our priority list.
Are choked out by the realities of life.

And begin to disappear all together.

Continue Reading…

Choking Out the Dream →

Photo Credit: iStock Photo

We all have dreams we’ve stopped pursuing.

As we get older, as we take on more responsibilities, our dreams can seem foolish. Or irresponsible. Or downright impossible.

There are bills to pay, mouths to feed, homes to purchase, vehicles to repair, taxes to pay, retirement to plan, vacations to fund, clothes to buy, iPhones to update, yards to maintain, home repairs to make, student loans to pay off, credit cards to pay off, car loans to pay off. Did I mention anything about bills to pay?

It’s no wonder our dreams fall to the bottom of our priorities. Our lives are inundated with much more important responsibilities.

And so our dreams begin to fade.
Fall to the bottom of our priority list.
Are choked out by the realities of life.

And begin to disappear all together.

Continue Reading…

Greater Things →

Background Photo Credit: www.bucharestdailyphoto.com

For greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done in this City

The words stuck in my throat as we belted out the song. The others in the car didn’t hear me trying to choke out those lyrics. At least, they didn’t seem to give any sign that they heard. This song holds a special place in my heart - and has become my song for Europe.

Greater Things

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God is Able →

My hand slipped up in the air as those first few chords were strummed. I needed this song today. Needed to sing those words as a reminder of who God is and what He can do. I desperately needed to know it was all in His hands.

I opened my mouth and allowed the words to rush out.

God is Able
He will never fail
He is almighty God

I couldn’t have imagined how desperate I was to say those words.

Greater than all we seek
Greater than all we ask
He has done great things

How deeply I needed that reminder.

Lifted up, He defeated the grave
raised to life, our God is able
In His name, we overcome
For the Lord, our God is able

God. Is. Able.

The words barely left my mouth before I heard that familiar, faint whisper in my heart.

I am able to do more than 200.

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Count the Cost →

Dreams don’t come easy.

They require hard work, dedication and a laser focus on your goal. They take planning and striving and evaluation. They will steal your time and energy and resources. They require early mornings, late nights and a lot of your free time. They are hard task managers, never taking a day off for vacation or holidays. They will push you to your breaking point, give the illusion that they will never happen and sap every bit of your mental, emotional and physical energy. They will take you on a roller coaster of emotions, from excited to frustrated to the verge of giving up and back again.

Dreams demand a lot.

It’s why so many are unfulfilled.

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Count the Cost →

Dreams don’t come easy.

They require hard work, dedication and a laser focus on your goal. They take planning and striving and evaluation. They will steal your time and energy and resources. They require early mornings, late nights and a lot of your free time. They are hard task managers, never taking a day off for vacation or holidays. They will push you to your breaking point, give the illusion that they will never happen and sap every bit of your mental, emotional and physical energy. They will take you on a roller coaster of emotions, from excited to frustrated to the verge of giving up and back again.

Dreams demand a lot.

It’s why so many are unfulfilled.

READ MORE…

The Practical Side of Dreaming →

Last week, we looked at pursuing our dreams.

I wrote about how it’s important to take time to dream.
We discussed the act of rediscovering the gifts and passions that form our dream.
We even talked about the time it takes for a dream to form.

We love talking about our dreams.

It’s easy to sit behind a computer screen and write about these big ideals we have for our lives. We like to share our dreams with friends and family and coworkers. We get a sense of satisfaction talking about what we want to do with our lives.

There’s no work involved in sharing a dream.
No risk, either.

But sharing our ideals and thoughts and desires doesn’t bring our dream any closer to reality.

All the encouragement and insight and inspiration in the world won’t write that book, or secure that dream job, or start that nonprofit, or plant that church, or build your own business. Conferences and speakers and blog posts can spark the idea and get you inspired, but they won’t achieve your dream for you.

In order to bring your dream into reality, you have to get practical: