Resources > Devotions Road Trip - Hitting the Road (A Study on Chasing a Dream Part Three) Posted by Rev. Jeff Dixon, Senior Equipping Minister, Covenant Community Church on Oct 13, 2003, 20:35

In the life of the apostle Paul we find some great advice for traveling through life as a dreamer.

1) When You Travel…Don’t Lose Touch with Home
 
 In other words stay accountable and don’t lose touch with home. It is interesting in the journeys of Paul that his heart was always close to home. He stayed in touch….
  That is why when he returned he gave reports…These reports shared not only the good things, but also the bad things that took place as he traveled. He was eager to share with others what was going on. This information included what he was trying to do, what God was doing in His life, and how he was trying to be obedient in sharing the gospel to others.

Paul knew it was important to keep in touch with others. Because of his life and ministry others would be inspired by what God was doing in Paul, and they would find inspiration in their own journey.

Always remember that your life inspires, encourages, and blesses others. If you are doing God’s business…then it is not your business….and you need to allow others to see and learn from what is happening to you!

Don’t lose touch with home… 
Home…with the Father
Home…with the Body of Christ

One of the reasons we know so much about Horatio Jackson’s trip is because of the telegrams, letters, and reports from Jackson as he traveled. Dreamers stay in touch with home.

Here is a part of Jackson’s journal….

North of Sacramento, we were lost.

We met a red-haired young woman riding along on a white horse.

"Which way to Marysville?" I asked her.

"Right down that road," she said and pointed. We took that road for about 50 miles and then it came to a dead end at an isolated farmhouse. The family all turned out to stare at us and told us we'd have to go back. We went back, and met the red-haired young woman again.

"Why did you send us way down there?" I asked her.

"I wanted paw and maw and my husband to see you," she said. "They've never seen an automobile."

Jackson had gotten some bad directions. This reminds me of the next bit of advice you need as you travel on the road to dreams…..
 
 
2) When you travel…don’t believe everything you hear
 
 There are times when you are trying to be a daring adventurer for Jesus that some will say…you don’t make a difference! I want you to ignore that and don’t listen and don’t believe it….The reason you should ignore it is not because I tell you…The reason to ignore it is because it is not Biblical. The Bible tells us that God has given us value, worth, and hope for the adventure…. THAT IS BASED ON BIBLICAL TRUTH
 
 Think about Paul
  He had been a man who had targeted the early church and had been involved in some evil plots to undo the things that were being accomplished.
  Try to imagine some of the stuff that Paul had to put up with
  Think about the skepticism
  Think about the unkind things that he had to hear…
 
 And when he heard them…what did he do?
  Did he hide?
  Did he laugh to himself and say “I’m not listening?”
  Did he get mad because people wouldn’t give him the benefit of the doubt?  No..instead he boldly stayed on course and showed that his life was an example
  He told people to check out what he was doing
  He didn’t hide anything
  He invited people to his example
 
 In other words, what others said did not bog him down
  Because he knew that would distract him from the journey of what God had called him to do….He kept his eyes on the goal…Focus on the Father, follow the Father, and invite the world to watch you now!
 
 Often when people hear something they don’t like, they get discouraged, angry, puffed up, bent out of shape, hurt, defensive, or decide to whine and they build up walls to separate them from the hurt. The walls they build to protect and separate them are also the same walls that trap them so they can’t be what it is that God called them to be….

Make sure that the things that you listen to are well grounded in God’s Word and for the rest, consider the source…and keep moving!
 
Now Jackson on his journey fell into a pattern….drive, break down, make repairs, and then keep moving. Often on the road to chasing dreams when we break down we simply stay put and quit. Here is the next bit of advice….
 
 
3) When you travel…don’t travel alone
 
 Stay close to the family of God (we mentioned that) but look even closer
 
 Beyond staying connected you have to build close relationships
 
 Think about Paul again
  Barnabas, John Mark, Silas, Timothy, Luke, Aquilla, Priscilla and don’t forget Sopater, Aristarchus, Gaius, Tychius, Trophimus…and oops, we almost forgot Erastus.
 
  These are names we don’t spend much time thinking about, but they were essential for Paul in his traveling.

Make sure there are others that you can count on as a dream chaser. Horatio Jackson had them on his road trip…Paul had them in his travels.

One of my favorite parts of the story of Jackson was when the Winton Automobile Company said they would help out. They would pay for parts, repairs and finance the remainder of his trip and he told them “No.”

Why did he answer that way?

Jackson wasn’t being rude, it was about him doing what he had set out to do…what he wanted to do…what he dared to do…what he dreamed to do……
 
 DREAMS become CASUALTIES when we give them up quickly for the best or easiest deal….
 
 But Jackson didn’t give up….he revealed an important part of himself by refusing to let others dictate or derail what he was trying to do. The final bit of advice for staying on the road to dreams is….
 
4) When you travel…be authentic, people need the real you!

Use your gifts and abilities without apology and become who it is that God has called you to be!

The road trip of Jackson ends when he arrives in New York City. He became the toast of the town. When it was all totaled up…..
 He spent $8000 to win $50
  He spent money on…
Crocker’s salary
  Bud the dog
  The car
  Gas
  Parts
 But he did not collect the bet….It wasn’t about the money

The reward for the dreamer is the dream come true…..

For Jackson the dreams did not stop there…
 In Burlington, Vermont he became successful businessman
  He became the publisher of a newspaper
  He was the owner of the town’s first radio station
  He became the president of a bank

 Already in his 40’s when the war broke out he insisted on enlisting in the army although he was too old…
 He was told NO…He set up a meeting with former President Teddy Roosevelt who ultimately would intervene on his behalf
 At the end of the war he returned from overseas as a decorated hero having received the Distinguished Service Cross….He helped to begin the American Legion
(He died at the age of 82 in 1955)

Listen…

 What happens when people dream?
  The world changes….
   Do you have a dream….
  Does it come from God???????

The chase it…..
There is a dreamer in all of us!