Change, the dream, accomplishing the goal, why  are they so hard to achieve? It can feel like you are standing at the bottom of a mountain looking straight up. You begin to wonder if it is even worth trying.

It was April 2000. I had just received a letter from the University saying I had one year to complete my dissertation or I would have no degree. I had already started and stopped two research projects in an attempt to finish. I was so overwhelmed at the thought of starting again. I began to tell myself things like, “Maybe it’s not meant to be, maybe I’m not smart enough, maybe I set my goals to high, maybe I can’t achieve what I thought I could…” It went on. Not only did I start pondering these things, but I actually started to believe them. The mountain seemed to big to even take the first step. I was ready to give up on my dream.

A week or so later, I received a phone call from my brother. My dad had died. As we were driving to my mom’s house with my three-month old son in the back seat, I looked at my husband and said, “I have to finish. It was important to my dad that I finish and I don’t ever want to have to explain to our son why I quit.” It was the catalyst I needed to take the first step toward completion.

There were other hurdles along the way. I was diagnosed with written expressive language disorder. Anytime I would sit down to type out all the thoughts running through my head, I would lose more than half of the thoughts and couldn’t retrieve them again. I had managed to compensate all through college and grad school until the dissertation. The thought of having 100 plus pages to write seemed impossible when I couldn’t access the thoughts in my head. It was another huge rock face standing in my way. I learned to talk my thoughts out onto a tape recorder and then transcribe them. I took another step. One step at a time and two years later I was finally crossing the stage to receive my degree.

It’s easy to believe those voices in our heads that tell us the dream is impossible. God tells us there is hope and there is a future.

There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off. Proverbs 23:18 NIV.

In Jeremiah 29:11 he tells us that He has a plan for our future and to prosper us. Believe it. Cling to it. Use him to propel you into the next step. The first thing I did when I decided to finish my degree was to surrender to God. I knew I couldn’t do it on my own. I had spent years trying. This time, I let him take charge and lead me through each step.

In the midst of facing the mountain, a baby step can feel like a giant leap, but it is a baby step. Call on Him and He will help you move toward your dreams in amazing ways. Cast your cares on him. Take one step toward your goal today. Worry about tomorrow, tomorrow. It really is that easy. Really. Don’t look at the mountain. Look at Him. By the end of the year you will be able to look back a see all the progress you have made one step at a time.

You can achieve your dreams one step at a time. It’s not a cliché.  All it takes is Him.

Share your goals, dreams and the first step you are taking to achieve them. We can encourage each other to achieve in 2015.