Ecclesiastes 5:7
“For in the multitude of dreams and many words there are also divers vanities: but fear thou God.”
The Book of Ecclesiastes is an old man looking back at his life and drawing a conclusion of what really matters in life. This is not a young man who has not experienced anything, but this is an old man who has traveled life’s road and has come to the end and realized what is truly important in life.
This old man is Solomon. Solomon started life with a heart for God. He had a heart that when God asked him what he wanted in life, he answered that the only thing he wanted was God’s wisdom to know what was right and wrong. Yet, somewhere in his life he lost his way and got wrapped up in materialism. The Book of Ecclesiastes shows the materialistic mind Solomon acquired and the result of that mind. In this conclusion, he talks about the seed of dreams. There are two seeds from where dreams come, and the results of those two seeds are very different.
The first seed of dreams is found in the verse above where he talks about dreams coming from “many words.” In other words, this person has many dreams that he talks about, but he does nothing to obtain those dreams. This person tells everyone about everything he would like to do, but truly never does anything to see those dreams come to reality. These dreams will never come to fruition and will leave a person empty because they are the result of talk and not production.
The second seed of dreams is found in verse 3 where the dreams come from a “multitude of business.” These dreams are come because someone is busy working. In other words, someone is busy working, and while they are working they see the potential of what can come from their work. These dreams are more than a dream, but they are the direction where this person is headed. This person will see their dreams come to reality because they are a result of hard work.
In both of these illustrations, you will find that there is nothing wrong with having a dream. There is nothing wrong with the pastor having a dream for his ministry. There is nothing wrong with the youth have a dream for their life. There is nothing wrong with a business person having a dream for their business. Dreams are the visions that should drive you to increase your potential.
Moreover, dreams will only be realized if you stop talking and start working. You can talk about your dreams, but if you do nothing to see them come to light then you will find your dreams are empty illusions. If you take your dreams and pursue them through hard work, then you can see your dreams become a reality. The fruit of your dreams are truly the result of the seed from whence they came. If they come through the multitude of words, then they will leave you empty. If they are a result of hard work, as long as you continue to work towards realizing them, you will see them come to reality.
The whole key comes down to the final phrase in the verse above, “…but fear thou God.” In other words, don’t allow your dreams to override your fear of God. Don’t allow dreams to pull you away from God. Dreams that cause you to stop fearing God will leave you empty. Friend, go ahead and pursue your dreams, but be sure that your dreams never take preeminence over God. As long as your dreams do not pull God off the throne of your life, then your dreams can be blessed by God. Go ahead and pursue your dreams, but never let your dreams keep you from what God’s will is for your life.