One of the biggest lies of our age is that we must pursue big dreams, and achieving them will make us happy and fulfilled. This belief is so deeply ingrained in our culture that many readily sacrifice everything—even children—to make it big. Though this kind of reckless pursuit is predominant in the secular world, it has gained a footing in the church.
Many Christians are now obsessed with building their platform, increasing their reach, or becoming influencers. All in the name of Jesus, of course.
And while the Bible does not forbid believers from having aspirations and goals, it warns us against pursuing vain glory. They will never make our life meaningful or satisfying. Instead, we should pursue knowing God and living out His purpose. More often than not, this requires dreaming small and living unimpressive lives.
So in Dream Small: The Secret Power of the Ordinary Christian Life, Seth Lewis reminds us that our greatest ambition is not fame or fortune but faithful service to God. And he also shows us the beauty, blessing, and bliss of living such a small life.
He says, “The world around you will constantly encourage you to follow your dreams. That’s not bad advice as far as it goes, but I’m asking you to pause first, and take the time to ask an important question that often gets overlooked: just where, exactly, are your dreams leading you?… The default assumption which says that bigger dreams will always turn out better is simply not true. Where will you find better dreams? That’s what this book is about. I want to show you that there really are better dreams, and encourage you that you can find them right now, right in front of you, right where you are.”
The book has nine chapters, about ten pages each. In the first two chapters, Lewis explains our dreams’ aim and shows how our biggest goals, the world, and even ourselves, are small compared to the infinite God who created us. Chapters three and four explore where tiny human beings can find their significance and purpose. The following three chapters flip the typical ladder of success and show how we can use these rungs to focus on the dream God created us for. And finally, chapters eight and nine explore the works and rewards of dreaming small.
Dreaming Small is a short, sweet, and well-written book on the blessing of living out God’s purpose for your life. It blessed me with two main lessons.
The first is the necessity of humility. This book reminded me the Christian life is a call to humility. A call to deny oneself and follow our humble King who emptied Himself of all His glory for sinners’ sake. I like that Lewis doesn’t advise against dreaming but redirects our dreams to focus on Christ. Sometimes I can get frustrated that my life has no weight because it is so dull and ordinary. But as Lewis shows, the mundane does not mean inconsequential. My little life, if lived faithfully, will have a more significant impact in eternity than big worldly dreams. It is better to be a doorkeeper in the house of the Lord than a king in this world.
The second thing that encouraged (and convicted) me is the necessity of contentment. I admit I often struggle with envy and discontentment, especially with personal success. I appreciated Lewis’ illustrations of the vanity of comparing our small self to other small people and the importance of being satisfied in Christ in whatever He calls us to do. The world will tell us to dream big and bigger, but Christ’s way is to dream small and serve. And we must be joyfully content with that.
Besides these two main things, Dreaming Small features many other wisdom, stories, and encouragement that blessed me. And I recommend this book to all Christians for a beautiful reminder of the blessing of dreaming small. Eternity will reveal that some of the most significant and impactful lives weren’t those recorded in history books but those small, mundane, ordinary Christian lives.
If this book interests you, you may also like A Holy Pursuit by Diane Jago and Everyday Faithfulness by Glenna Marshall.
*The Good book company graciously gave me a copy, and this is my honest review.*
