Knit Together by Debbie Macomber

I don't have a bucket list of activities - but I do have a bucket list of books - or call it a Booket List.
Thanks to audio and eBooks I'm able to read books a lot faster than I used to because I get them in all three formats.  One of the books on my list that I read recently was "Knit Together" by Debbie Macomber, an inspirational book about achieving our dreams based on the premise that God puts the dreams in our hearts and therefore it is not wrong to pursue them.

I really enjoyed the book and maybe especially the push it gave me to stop saying I can't write a book because it doesn't fit into my family's schedule.  In her book she quotes Oliver Wendell Holmes saying "most of us go to our graves with our music still inside us."  Debbie says, " We aren't taking anything away from our families when we pursue our dreams; in fact, I believe we're teaching our children some of the most valuable lessons of their lives." (loc. 869)

Another amazing thought she conveyed was this:
          The yoke God gives us is not heavy; it is custom-made for each of us - designed to never wear us out!  The burden that we carry when it comes to our purpose and the pattern God has for our lives is never too big - it's just the right size.  It's the other things we decide to do on our own that become bulky; they slow us down and leave heavy weights for us to half carry and sometimes half drag.
I've always heard that God does not give us more than we can handle, but it never occurred to me that I myself might pick up things that weren't meant for me.

Makes me want to be more intentional and more attuned to God's word before taking on a new task, habit, action, etc.  All while keeping in mind Macomber's suggestion that, "We must be ready to attempt something so great for God that unless He intervenes, we are bound to fail." (loc 766)

It's such a fine line though between working to accomplish our dreams while being content with where we are at.  Because no matter how successful I might become, if I am constantly looking ahead to the next project and can't be content with the now, then achieving the dream means nothing.