All the King's Horses by Barry Milazzo

Author:Barry Milazzo
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Charisma House
Published: 2015-03-20T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21

FIELD OF DREAMS

I’m fearful of even more shattered dreams, but now I know there’s a better way, a better relationship than any flawed one in this world, a higher dream, a more perfect love than I can ask for or imagine, in the person of my Lord Jesus.1

LARRY CRABB

IN THE FEATURE film Field of Dreams, Ray Kinsella (played by Kevin Costner) was prompted by a mystical voice to build a baseball stadium in the midst of his Iowa cornfield. One day the spirit of Shoeless Joe Jackson of the famous 1919 Black Sox scandal appeared on the field along with numerous legendary ballplayers. One of the last players to appear was Ray’s long-deceased father, John Kinsella. Deeply puzzled about his new surroundings, John engaged his son in conversation:

John: “Can I ask you something? . . . Is this heaven?”

Ray: “No, it’s Iowa.”

John: “Iowa? I could’ve sworn it was heaven.”

Ray: “Is there a heaven?”

John: “Oh yeah! It’s the place where dreams come true.”2

As we packed up and moved from Glen Rock, I had no illusions about Kinnelon being heaven, but I sure hoped it would be closer to heaven than Iowa (sorry Hawkeye and Cyclones fans—that was a cheap shot. And I hope Dan Gable doesn’t come looking for me). But I did think the worst of our sorrows were behind us and anticipated that Kinnelon was the place many of our long cherished dreams would come true.

A move to a new community, a new home, or a new job can be just what the doctor ordered to lift us from the inevitable ruts of life. We often see this when a professional ballplayer’s career is rejuvenated by putting on a different uniform in a new city. But unless something more significant replaces the adrenaline rush of even our most carefully orchestrated fresh starts, the ruts inexorably return.

Our search for heaven in this world, in one way or another, eventually breaks down. Expectations of reaching a plateau of blessing and comfort can evolve into a deceived sense of entitlement, resulting in bitterness or despondency as our demands for blessings are rebuffed. Worse yet, we might actually gain our coveted blessings and become further deceived that our “faith” is working. Larry Crabb describes this widespread deception:

We’re never more deceived than when we think we’re living for God but in fact are living for His blessings. When we persuade ourselves that our job is to pray properly, live morally, and love meaningfully, and that it is God’s job to reward us with greater blessings we most want, we’re deceived. We have a fleshly view of the Christian life . . . Christians come in two varieties: those who trust Jesus to get them to heaven while trusting

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