Dream Heroic Dreams
I have not said much about the elections in awhile. As I stated shortly thereafter, I have not “moved on;” I am moving forward. God always has a way to move us forward into blessing and purpose, regardless of what satan does. The key is always listening to Holy Spirit’s instruction regarding how to move forward into His planned victory.
My friend, patriot, and spiritual son, Major (Ret.) William Ostan, recently shared with me some powerful thoughts which shed light on how to move forward in this challenging season. Will is the soldier who introduced me to the Appeal to Heaven flag and I share our story in my book, An Appeal to Heaven.
“We all know the church in America has been through a shaking over the past 12 months. And I’m not just referring to the Coronavirus. The outcome of the elections was, for me and many others, a great disappointment. Why? For many important reasons having to do with America’s calling and future, but also because of how hard we prayed for a majority of righteous rulers to be installed in Congress and the White House.
“At least for me, January 20th, 2021, felt like the death of dreams as an anti-God administration was officially inaugurated and occupied the place of political power. I’ve felt despair.
“But if I’ve learned one thing from over 12 years of active-duty service in the Army, it is that leaders should never operate primarily out of feelings. Yes, it is healthy to process loss emotionally and I have allowed myself time to mourn the results of the election. But once that period of time ended, I quickly moved on to see how I can, as did King David of old, recorded in Acts 13:36, ‘serve God’s purposes in (our) generation.’ The beginning of the answer is simple: it is time, once again, to dream heroic dreams for America’s God-ordained, providential destiny to be fulfilled.
“When Ronald Reagan burst onto the national stage while running for President against Jimmy Carter, the ‘Great Communicator’ quickly dispelled the prevailing zeitgeist (the spirit of a particular time period in history as shown by its ideas and beliefs) that greatness and heroism were now anachronistic (belonging to or appropriate to an earlier period; old-fashioned) relics of a bygone era. In many ways, the late 1970s were very similar to 2021. The country was in a malaise. Discouragement and depression were rampant. The past looked far better than the future. Hope was in scarce supply. But God had a plan to turn the tide by sending a ‘happy warrior’ to rouse the nation out of its prolonged stupor.
“In his first inaugural address, President Reagan proclaimed, ‘We have every right to dream heroic dreams.’ He went on to say,
‘Those who say that we are in a time when there are no heroes just don’t know where to look. You can see heroes every day going in and out factory gates. Others, a handful in number, produce enough food to feed all of us and then the world beyond…There are entrepreneurs with faith in themselves and faith in an idea who create new jobs, new wealth, and opportunity…Their patriotism is quiet, but deep. Their values sustain our national life. Now, I have used the words ‘they’ and ‘their’ in speaking of these heroes. I could say ‘you’ and ‘your,’ because I’m addressing the heroes of whom I speak – you, the citizens of this blessed land.’[1]
“Great communicator indeed! Aristotle summed up political greatness as the ability to translate wisdom into action on behalf of the public good.[2] That’s exactly what Reagan is doing in this speech and there is so much inspiration to be found within that quote, but what I want to focus on are three truths:
1) Heroes still exist today.
2) You are one of those heroes.
3) Heroes must continue to dream heroic dreams.
“The culture and the enemy of our souls will rage against all of the above. He will orchestrate difficult circumstances which will make us feel like the heroic is far away, only for a select few, and impossible to fathom. But friend, you must not give in to those feelings or thoughts. They are lies! The truth is that God isn’t done with America and you still have a role to play. A critical, essential role!
“May we all, as President Reagan exhorted us to do, continue to dream heroic dreams!”
“When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouths were filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, ‘The Lord has done great things for them.’ the Lord has done great things for us; we are glad. Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like streams in the Negeb! Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.” (Psalm 126, ESV)
Pray with me:
Heavenly Father, we acknowledge you as the Giver of dreams. While we do not like what has happened in the 2020 elections, we trust You and know that Your plans for America’s destiny will not be thwarted. Help us to overcome the places in our hearts where there is unbelief and move into faith.
Lord, reawaken dreams gone dormant in us. Heal the parts of our hearts that have suffered from hope deferred. We want to partner with You by dreaming heroic dreams in our own lives, the lives of others, and for our beloved nation.
We know that the founding of America was providential and that, as our pilgrim forefathers once said, was for the propagation of the gospel around the world. We know that You are not done with America, and we covenant with You for the fulfillment of all your dreams for her.
Father, fill us today with your Holy Spirit and enable us to dream like You dream. Help us in our weakness to operate from Your strength. Remind us that we are part of a great lineage. Bring to mind stories of the heroes of old in the Bible and in the founding of America. God, we know that we are a vital part of their storyline and connected to them through the synergy of the ages.
Just like the signers of the Declaration of Independence, we commit our lives, our fortunes, and sacred honor to You, King Jesus. In Your name we pray. Amen.
Our decree:
We decree that God-dreams are being awakened and reawakened in our land.
Portions of today’s post were contributed U.S. Army Major (Ret.) William J. Ostan. He is Founder and President of Arc of Justice | Advocates for Wounded Warriors. His nonprofit represents clients who have suffered injustices in the military’s medical separation process. Will is currently spearheading Wounded Warrior Bill of Rights legislation in Congress. You can find out more about him by clicking the link above.
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[1] Greatness: Reagan, Churchill & The Making of Extraordinary Leaders. Steven F. Hayward. Crown Publishing. 2005. P. 162-163,
[2] Ibid. 17.