I couldn’t believe I was living the dream. I had landed my dream job. A full-time staff position at the local YMCA where I could incorporate faith, exercise, and positivity into a community of some of the most diverse people I had ever met. It was truly an answered prayer. The Y’s mission was to foster a healthy mind, body, and spirit. And the leadership embraced that mission by praying together and always encouraging each other to be the best version of themselves. I was confident that God had led me to this job so I could grow and prosper in my faith. My future was filled with hope.
After a year of working there, I started having health problems that eventually led to a diagnosis. I had a genetic Ataxia called SCA-6, a neurological disease that I inherited from my dad. It’s hard watching someone we love suffer with ataxia, and it’s even harder when we know that we’re watching our future self.
My husband and I prayed and prayed, and then we prayed some more. And God brought us to the difficult conclusion that I must leave my dream job. I felt so confused. I was sure God had led me to the YMCA where I could blossom spiritually. Now I wasn’t sure what to do with myself. But as always, God had a plan.
About a year later, several of my former co-workers and I started a YMCA women’s Bible study. That’s when I realized that it wasn’t the YMCA that God drew me to; it was the people.
Now, ten years later, God has doubled our group. We have all grown in our faith. Our husbands, grown kids, and grandkids have grown in their faith. We pray together and always encourage each other. It’s far more than any dream job could have offered.
Life looks a little different from what I imagined, but God’s grace is always sufficient. I thought I was giving up my dream, but instead, because of God, I’m living my dream. God always has a plan (Jeremiah 29:11).
Don’t ever give up on your dreams. God loves a dreamer. Just trust and be obedient to Him, even when it doesn’t make sense. He will make sure you’re living the dream He has in store for you.
Stacey Hickman and her husband live in Bloomington, Indiana—Hoosier Town. They have three adult kids and two grandkids. She loves to write and share her Christ story in hopes of helping grow God’s Kingdom. She and her husband duo as singer/songwriters.