WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
MAY 2, 2021
TOPIC: Â WHEN DREAMS BECOME UNFULFILLED FANTASIES
BY T. O. BANSOÂ
“It shall even be as when a hungry man dreams, and look — he eats; but he awakes, and his soul is still empty; or as when a thirsty man dreams, and look — he drinks; but he awakes, and indeed he is faint, and his soul still craves: so the multitude of all the nations shall be, who fight against Mount Zion” (Isaiah 29:8 New King James Version).
As the proverb goes, “If wishes were horses, beggars would ride.” Everybody wants a good future for himself but not everyone realizes what he desires. While some people could be blamed for not setting realistic for their lives or even SMART goals as the management experts have taught, that would be a wrong accusation against other people. For one reason or the other, the goals of this latter group are yet to be realized.
Beyond the dreams of setting goals for one’s life, there are others who also had spiritual dreams and visions they believed God showed them about their lives. They had divine revelations about their future, which they believed and expected to happen.
While some could be blamed for not doing the needful or playing their part to realize their God-given dreams, that would not be true of others who diligently pursued their realization. They did what they thought they should do spiritually and physically but the dreams are yet to become reality. Such people are often concerned about why this is so.
Many years ago, a musician sang a philosophical song that someone who dreamed of becoming rich in his dream should not rejoice but should be told to work hard. This is just a paraphrase of what he said. There is a difference between dreams and reality. Having spiritual dreams/visions about a great future for ourselves is good or having great goals and plans is laudable. It excites one. It encourages one. It gives one hope. But dreams must become reality. That is the most important thing. Otherwise, after some time, one could become disillusioned. Unfortunately, failure to realize their dreams have caused depression for some people and led them to take drastic decisions like committing suicide. This is condemnable
I recall my conversation with someone who told me that he had stopped being excited about personal prophecies given to him because all the past prophecies were yet to be fulfilled. I understood what he was saying. He was going through some challenges which were trying to mock his faith in God. He was being weighed down by the challenges of life.
There could be other persons like this child of God because “the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world” (1 Peter 5:9 New King James Version).  Such people must never become despondent. They must never lose hope. While it is true that some people give fake prophecies, prophecies are real. “Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:20-21 New King James Version).Â
There is a time lag between when prophecies are given and when they are fulfilled. It takes time for dreams to become reality. Therefore, believers must continue to renew their faith in God by feeding on His Word. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17). They must continue to pray and do what they are supposed to do naturally.
Isaiah 29:8 says, “It shall even be as when a hungry man dreams, and look — he eats; but he awakes, and his soul is still empty; or as when a thirsty man dreams, and look — he drinks; but he awakes, and indeed he is faint, and his soul still craves: so the multitude of all the nations shall be, who fight against Mount Zion” (New King James Version).
This scripture is relevant to the subject I am dealing with. God said all the nations fighting against Jerusalem would vanish like a dream! Those who were attacking her walls would vanish like a vision in the night (Isaiah 29:7).
He went further to compare them to a hungry man who dreamed that he ate food but woke up hungry without food to eat. He said they would be like a thirsty man who dreamed that he drank water but woke up still thirsty and had no water to drink (verse 8). This means that their dreams of defeating Jerusalem would become unfulfilled fantasies. Their dreams shall not be realized.
This scripture, Isaiah 29:8, describes the experience of some people. Their dreams are becoming unfulfilled fantasies. There is nobody in such a situation who would not be concerned. Proverbs 13:12 says, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when dreams come true, there is life and joy” (New Living Translation).Â
When someone does all he knows to do spiritually and physically to realize his goals or his God-given dreams, he expects, that after some time, he should be seeing results. But sometimes there are spiritual forces that oppose the realization of dreams and goals. I am not saying that this is the only reason for unfulfilled dreams. There are other factors, including the failure on the part of the person concerned.
But I am dealing with the aspect of spiritual forces that hinder the fulfilment of dreams and goals even after one has done all one should do humanly speaking. These forces try to waste people’s efforts and frustrate fulfilment in life. They could cause the wind to begin to blow against one’s boat as one rows to get to the other side (Mark 6:48).
Matthew 13:25 says while everyone slept, the enemy of a farmer came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away. When the good seed the farmer sowed began to grow and produce grain, the tares the enemy planted also began to grow.
There are forces that work to frustrate a man’s dream and he must deal with them in serious prayer. He must never give up the fight, no matter long he has been in the fight. Your dreams will not become unfulfilled fantasies. You won’t dream of abundance in your dream but be suffering lack. You won’t dream of affluence but continue to live in abject poverty. You won’t dream of promotion but be experiencing demotion. You won’t see yourself generously blessing people with gifts but you are begging to make ends meet. Your dreams won’t become unfulfilled fantasies.
In 2 Chronicles 32,  Sennacherib king of Assyria entered Judah, encamped against the fortified cities, and purposed to make war against Jerusalem. He boasted against the LORD. His servants spoke against the LORD God and against His servant King Hezekiah. After Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz, prayed and cried out to heaven, the LORD sent an angel who cut down every mighty man of valor, leader, and captain in the camp of the king of Assyria. His dream of defeating Jerusalem became an unfulfilled fantasy.
The account of the incident recorded in 2 Kings 19:35-37 says the angel of the LORD went out to the Assyrian camp and killed 185,000 Assyrian troops. Consequently, King Sennacherib broke camp and returned to his land. One day while he was worshiping in the temple of his god, Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer killed him with their swords and fled to the land of Ararat.  In this case, it was God who caused the dream of Sennacherib to fail.
Any power of the devil that wants your efforts to fulfil your dream to be in vain shall be defeated in Jesus’ name. I pray that all attempts to waste your efforts shall come to an end today. Isaiah 50:7 says, “For the Lord GOD will help Me; therefore I will not be disgraced; therefore I have set My face like a flint, and I know that I will not be ashamed” (New King James Version). You will receive the help of God that makes dreams become reality and goals achievable. You won’t be disgraced. Your dreams shall not become unfulfilled fantasies.
1 Kings 1:5 says Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king.”  He prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him as he executed his plan to become king to succeed his father, David, who was very old. Everything went smoothly and he seemed to have realized his dream. He was entertaining his guests when he received the news that David had proclaimed Solomon, his brother, as the king. “There are many plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless the LORD’s counsel — that will stand. (Proverbs 19:21 New King James Version). Adonijah’s dream became an unfulfilled fantasy because he was not God’s candidate (1 Kings 2:15). This shall not be your story.
Continue to have faith in God (Mark 11:22). Never stop praying (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Keep doing what is required of you physically. Romans 10:11 says whoever believes in God will not be put to shame. 1 Peter 2:6b says the same thing. “They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces were not ashamed” (Psalm 34:5 5 New King James Version). Whoever believes will not act hastily (Isaiah 28:16b).
Don’t quit on God. And don’t give up on your God-given dream. “For surely you have a future ahead of you; your hope will not be disappointed” (Proverbs 23:18 New Living Translation).  Even if it seems the fulfilment of your dream/vision or goals is being delayed, never give up. “For the vision is yet for an appointed time; but at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry” (Habakkuk  2:3 New King James Version).
Keep hope alive. “The hopes of the godly result in happiness, but the expectations of the wicked are all in vain” (Proverbs 10:28 New Living Translation). Your dreams shall not become unfulfilled fantasies. They shall come to pass in Jesus’ name.
TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. I urge you to take the following steps: *Admit you are a sinner and you cannot save yourself and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto you today. I know I am a sinner and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and resurrected the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank you, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You will need to join a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church in your area where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like the palm tree and grow like the cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: My dreams/visions shall not become unfulfilled fantasies in Jesus’ name. I receive the fulfilment of my dreams/visions and goals. All forces trying to frustrate the realization of my dreams/vision and goals are defeated in Jesus’ name. I neutralize them. My hope shall not be disappointed. My hope shall not be deferred; my heart shall not be sick. My dreams shall come true and I shall have life and joy. The Lord shall help me; therefore, I will not be disgraced.
(For over 600 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T. O. Banso is the President, Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org
  
  
  
  
