— The dream remains as fresh today as when I received it those many years ago. I knew it was of the Lord. He had often spoken to me in dreams and visions, as well as by other means.
In the dream I was crossing a large open field. The field was dry and brown. The grass had withered. As I looked back across the field I saw a group of people pointing at me. Then they pointed at the ground. What are they looking at? Why are they pointing at me?
What I saw startled me. As I looked back where I had walked, I could see that each footstep I made had green grass springing up in it.
As near as I could determine, the dream was about my calling in life. I was to bring the life of the Lord wherever He sends me.
Yes, I realize that dreams are very personal. And it really isn’t my intent to draw attention to myself. There is something else I want to say.
Could the dream be about you? Could it be that God’s purpose in every believer’s journey in this world is to bring life to others? Could it be that the Lord has a dream He wants you to pursue? Think about it. —
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Journal,
It was March, 1976. I was 35 years old, Betty was 33, our three children, Nathan, Andre, and Shana, were 11, 6, and 2, respectively. We had so little money and no one to back us. I had my guitar, my Bible, a precious family, and one other thing. The Lord had given me a stewardship to raise up a ministry in Central Louisiana that would center on training disciples for the kingdom of God.
Was it a crazy idea? Some would say yes. All I can say is that if God gives you a crazy idea, go for it. This is the way the kingdom of God works. The Lord will give one believer a certain work to do. He will give another believer another certain work to do. Some of these works may seem impractical, impossible, and just plain crazy. Don’t worry about that part. If the Lord is in it, He Himself will see to it.
This is what Paul had to say about crazy works:
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” (Eph 2:10 NASB)
Yes indeed, Christian Challenge was and continues to be a good work from the Lord. But it 
didn’t begin on March 9, 1976, when we had our first service in a broken down store building. Christian Challenge began in eternity. It would be another footprint in the sands of time. This is what Paul is telling us. God prepared our works beforehand.
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The footprints of faith…
It is important to understand that a walk of faith is highly personal. It is essentially a walk under the protective covering and guidance of the Holy Spirit. The all important work of the Holy Spirit in each believer’s life is to take the things of the Lord Jesus and share them with the believer.
Hear what Jesus said before He went to the cross:
“I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.
“He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.” John 16:12-15
Living by faith is never a step into darkness. It is a walk governed by the light of the Lord.
Jesus said,
“I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” John 8:12
Paul adds,
“For God, who said, ‘Light shall shine out of darkness,’ is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” 2Co4:6
With each step of faith there is something you always leave behind and there is something
you always gain. You leave behind your fears. You gain a life that is filled with the richness of Jesus.
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The faithfulness of the Lord
God gives us two safe guards for our walk with Him. Every child of God is given the Holy Spirit as a testifier to truth. Every child of God is given the Scriptures by which the Holy Spirit teaches us God’s ways.
The working principle of faith begins with properly handling God’s written word. Paul said to Timothy,
“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.” 2Tim2:15
Faith is a spiritual reality produced in the believer by the Holy Spirit and God’s Word. Where there is no Word of the Lord, there can be no true faith walk.
Paul said it this way,
“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word (voice) of Christ.” (Rom 10:17 NASB)
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.” (Joh 10:27-28 NASB)
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